JALR Agency
by Shadowsouls0
Summary: Jaune Arc: A private investigator in the city of Vale, a crime filled place where the lines between good and evil are almost impossible to see. One day, he receives a request from a woman, going only by the name of 'Ruby'. A simple request, find her missing sister. But, as Jaune and his partner Ren quickly find, not everything is as it seems, something far more sinister is at work.
1. Chapter 1

**A/n- Well, this was an idea I had awhile back. It's still RWBY, but I think I'll let the story speak for itself.**

Chapter one: A concerned sister

I looked outside, frowning out at the world. I did a lot of that these days. It was raining, the quick pitter-patter of water on my window nearly drowning out the ticking of the clock on the wall. I looked on my desk, taking stock of everything. That's what I normally did on slow days. My desk was nice and neat, my notebooks on the left side, my link to the rest of the world, my phone, on the other side, and in the middle, a nameplate. " _Jaune Arc. Yeah, haven't changed it yet._ " I thought, frowning slightly. In hindsight, I should've changed my last name when I moved to Vale. Then again, three years later and I was still here, so I guess I was in the clear. I would've gladly continued just staring at my desk, only for my phone to suddenly ring. I grabbed the top of it, pulling it over to me as I lightly twisted the cord with one hand. "Hello?" I said, like a question. "Mr. Arc. A woman's here to see you. She says she's a client." I heard the quiet voice of my secretary say over the phone. I nodded, forgetting for a moment she couldn't see me. "Send her up." I said, grabbing my notebook.

The line clicked dead, and not a minute later I heard my door creak open. It was a short girl, younger than I was, maybe fifteen at the most. She had short black hair, red highlights towards the bottom. Her eyes were bright silver, seeming to light up the room, both of them gazing at me, likely taking in my appearance. " _She might not like the old trenchcoat look…_ " I thought as I continued watching her. She was dressed in a skirt that stretched just past her knees, it being red and black polka dots, reminding me distinctly of a ladybug. Her shirt was a simply black top, sleeveless I guessed. Then again, it was hard to tell beneath the denim jacket, a few patches in the sides of it. The jacket was long sleeved, but not buttoned up, stretching down almost to her waist, and looked like it was made out of an old pair of jeans. Her hair was laying flat, cut down around her chin in a few more jagged points, but most of it looked clean-cut. In her right hand she was carrying an umbrella, black with silver polka dots on it. In her left, she was carrying a small, dark red leather purse, the design of a rose on the side.

"Are you Jaune Arc?" she asked. I nodded, smiling at her, "Least you can read." I said, pointing to my nametag, "Yeah, that's what they call me." I said. She giggled, the sound light and airy, frankly it made her seem almost childlike, if her eyes didn't already. "Please, sit down." I said, gesturing to the empty chair in front of me. She complied, sliding into the chair in front of me. She set her umbrella against her chair, a few drops of it hitting the wooden side of it, some guiding down to the floor, near where she laid her purse. I watched her move her hands into her lap, lightly fidgeting, seemingly nervous. "Now, what brings you to my office on this gray morning?" I asked, placing my hands on the table, my fingers pointed up like a steeple. The girl looked down at her lap, her eyes flashing with worry. "It's my sister, Yang." she said.

I nodded sympathetically, "Ah, concerned about a family member huh? What's the problem?" I asked. The girl looked up, "She's gone missing. She… she disappeared last week. We told the cops but, they haven't done anything…" she said, her face scrunching up, as if in disgust with the police department. I cocked an eyebrow at her, "I… won't pry into why they haven't. Either way, you're asking me to find her right?" I asked. She nodded, "Can you?" she asked. I shrugged, "Well, the devil's in the details ma'am. Let's start from the beginning. I want you to tell me anything that could be useful to my investigation, no matter how… painful, it may be." I said. She smiled, "My name's Ruby Mister Arc, you don't have to call me ma'am." she said. I chuckled, holding out my right hand as she held out her left. I quickly changed, holding out my left… only for her to have changed to her right. We both shrugged as we set our hands down, Ruby doing so somewhat awkwardly.

"Anyway. My sister's full name is Yang Xiao Long. Here, this might help." she said, reaching into her purse and pulling out what looked like a photograph. It showed a woman in a pair of tight jeans, a black belt tied around them making them even tighter. On her feet were a pair of large boots, reaching up just below her knees, her jeans bleeding into them. Above her jeans she was wearing a tight white t-shirt, hugging her figure and showing off her large breasts, exposing a fair bit of cleavage as well. This girl was beautiful, and she knew it. Over her tight t-shirt was a loose-fitting black leather jacket, going down just past her waist with a few rips and tears in it, some sewn back together, other's left torn. She had her right hand curled into a first, smashing it into her left palm. On her face was a cocky grin, her eyes hidden behind dark sunglasses. Her most notable feature? Her hair.

Her hair was easily some of the longest I'd ever seen, stretching down past her waist and even past her rear in spots. It was bright yellow, as if her hair was handcrafted from the sun's rays. She seemed to take good care of it, since there wasn't a missing hair, split-end, or anything of the sort within the massive mane. "Bit of a tomboy huh?" I asked, smiling at my shorter client. She nodded, "Yeah, Yang was never into all that cooking, cleaning, being a proper woman stuff. She was… she wasn't the most… ethical, of people." she said, clearly looking for the right words to describe her sister. I nodded, "So, a tomboy with a tendency towards violence, that about right?" I asked. Ruby nodded, "Exactly." she said. I had a feeling about that girl, Yang. She was trouble, I could tell just by looking at her. By taking this job, there'd be trouble.

Course, trouble was my middle name.

"Alright. Can you tell me anything about her? Who she hung out with? Clubs she frequented? Reasons anyone might want to kidnap her?" I asked. Ruby looked up in thought, tapping a finger on her chin for a few moments. "Hmm, Yang wasn't very open about what she did, Dad didn't like it when she came home late… though, I _did_ see her come out of a club downtown with a drink in her hand last month." she said. I nodded, opening my notebook and writing down the club she was talking about. It wasn't hard to figure out, there was only one club in the downtown area. "Anything else?" I asked. She pressed her hands into her forehead, seemingly trying to think. "Uwhaaaa oh! Right!" she said, holding up a finger and smiling. "She mentioned she hung out with this one girl when she went out to party! Uh… I don't remember her name, Black? Bleak? Something along those lines." she said.

I wrote that down to, nodding to myself as I did so. "Is that all you can think of Ruby?" I asked. She nodded, "Sorry, but yeah, that's all I know. Do you think you can find her?" she asked, getting that worried look on her face again. I gave her my most comforting smile, "I'd think so Ruby, I'll find her." I said. Ruby nodded, giving me a relieved smile. "Thank you. Oh, and, here." she said, reaching into her purse and pulling out a few cards of lien. "Half your payment, the other when the job's done, that's how you work right?" she asked. I nodded, grabbing the lien and shoving it in my coat pocket. "Yeah, it'll be fine. Now head on it, I'll start the search." I said. She nodded, standing up and grabbing her purse, picking up her umbrella and pointing it at the ground. "Thanks again!" she said, walking away with a slight skip in her step. I watched until she was out the door, then I picked up my phone, spinning around the ring to the proper numbers. Then I held the receiver to my ear, and waited.

"Hello?" I heard deep voice say on the other end of the line. "Ren, we've got a case." I said. I heard him yawn, "I'm on my way, I'm caught in traffic." he said. I nodded, "Alright. Meet me at the Rough Breaker." I said. I heard a sound of agreement on the other side before the line cut off. I pushed back from my desk, standing up before grabbing my notebook, placing it inside my coat before I pushed the chair back in, shutting the blinds behind me. " _So much for a slow day._ " I thought as I walked towards the door, grabbing my black fedora from the hatrack next to the door. I walked out, stopping in the hall as I looked at myself in the mirror. I had on black shoes, polished almost to a shine, leading back into a pair of simple gray pants. Above them, on the other hand, was what people recognized me for. I had on a faded, dark yellow trench coat, a few patches in places where it ripped. On my head was, of course, my old fedora, what may have once been bright yellow had faded to an almost gray color. I smiled slightly at my reflection, deep blue eyes gazing back at me. " _Hard to believe it's been three years…_ " I thought.

I turned away, walking back through the hall until I came to the end of it. I pushed open the door, walking down the familiar stairwell, heading into the bottom floor of the building. "Good morning Mr. Arc." I heard a high voice say. I turned, smiling slightly at my secretary, the only other person in the building. I let my eyes wander for a few seconds, gazing over her brown hair, chocolate brown eyes, her long bunny ears. Eventually though, they landed on what she was wearing. It was pretty simple, a brown sweater and dark gray trousers, not something a lot of women wore. "Same to you Velvet, and seriously, just call me Jaune." I said. It didn't seem right that someone two years older than me would call me by such a formal title. She nodded, "Alright then Mr… Jaune, sorry." she said, looking down. I shook my head, "It's fine. How's little Ton-Ton?" I asked. I prided myself on my imagination, me and Ren both did. We said it was what made us great detectives, that we could see the crime from start to finish. I could even go far as saying I could start to imagine what it was like to be a faunus.

Being a single mother _and_ a faunus though? I couldn't even begin…

"She's doing well thank you. I'll have to bring her into work someday. Have her meet her uncle." she said, smiling at me. I chuckled, rubbing my neck, "Well uh, I don't know about that. Might not want her to see such a dangerous line of work…" I said, trailing off. Velvet giggled, "Well, couldn't pick a much better role model." she said. I felt my face flush slightly as I turned, walking towards the door. "Yeah, uh, Velvet, tell any clients that come by that they'll have to reschedule, I'll be out working on this case for a while." I said. She nodded, her fingers a blur as they moved on her typewriter. "Well, what about Ms. Goodwitch, of the VCPD? She requested a meeting today? Should I tell her you're putting it off again?" she asked, giving me a smug look. I sighed, reaching into my pocket, pulling out my lighter. "Tell her I'm busy, ask her to wait here if she's that desperate." I said, somewhat sarcastically as I grabbed a cigar from my other pocket, lighting it up and taking a long drag.

I walked out of the room without another word, exhaling the smoke into the outside world as I saw people walking among the sidewalk. " _Crap_." I thought, feeling the rain hitting me, some of it hitting my cigar. Just as I was about to turn around I saw a shadow come over me, the rain stopping. "Forget something?" I heard Velvet ask. I turned, smiling at her as I took the umbrella, holding it over both of us. "What would I do without you?" I said. She giggled, walking back inside, "Come back in one piece Jaune!" she said, shutting the door behind her with a hint of finality. I turned back, taking another drag of my cigar before exhaling, grabbing it with one hand and pulling back, letting my thoughts get slightly muddled. Then again, after smoking three of these a day for so many years, you start to get used to it.

I walked down the street, holding my plain black umbrella in my right hand, my cigar in my left. " _I got crocea mors didn't I?_ " I thought as I clamped down on my cigar, keeping it between my lips. I reached my hand down, feeling the familiar plastic hitting my hand as I smiled, grabbing my cigar again, quickly inhaling. " _Good, didn't forget this time._ " I thought. I kept walking, passing by hundreds of people, meaningless faces, meaningless features, some faunus, some human, some good, some bad. Some druggies, some dealers, some rapists, some victims. To a younger, more naive me, it would've mattered, I would've tried to solve everyone's problems, try to make everyone happy and put every criminal behind bars. " _How stupid was I back then?_ " I thought. I could barely scrape out a living for myself and already I had dreams as big as the world. An Arc trait I suppose.

It took me twenty minutes to get to the familiar club, the Tough Breaker. Run by crooks, for crooks. Of course, if you needed information, you went here. Either you went here to get stoned, stabbed, or smarter… huh, be a good slogan actually. As I was walking up, I smiled, seeing the familiar car. It was a fairly new model, having the same, strange shape most cars did. The roof was pulled up, but I knew it would fall back down at a moments notice, that _was_ how convertible's worked after all. Two things gave away whose it was, one, the fact that it was painted dark green with two strips of pink down the sides. The other? The man leaning against it. The rain had slowed, so his hair wasn't incredibly wet, falling down his back to near his waist, tied off in a ponytail. He was dressed in a slick suit, dark green with a magenta tie around his neck, a white undershirt beneath it. He had on black pants, bleeding down into brown shoes, almost just like mine. His hands were shoved in his pockets, his back slightly arched forwards as he looked around, his eyes hazy but alert.

When he spotted me he stood up straight, walking towards me. "Jaune." he said. I nodded, "Ren. I'll explain inside." I said, closing my umbrella. The two of us walked forwards, heading towards the large building near the center of Downtown Vale. The place had no windows, only two doors leading into the building. The place had old fashioned swing doors, no bouncer at the front. It didn't matter how old you were, anyone could walk in. Difference was, not everyone could drink, and not everyone walked out. I pushed open the creaky doors, Ren following silently behind me as I started briefing him on the situation. By the time we got to the bar counter, having dodged a few drunks along the way, Ren was fully aware of what we were doing. "So, standard missing job?" he asked. I shook my head, frowning, "Seems like it… but my gut's telling me there's more to this." I said. When my gut spoke to me, I normally listened. It'd saved my life, both literally and socially, on multiple occasions.

I sat down at the metal bar stool, Ren sitting directly to my right. "Junior." I said simply, knowing the man could hear me. He turned around, walking over to us. "Detectives… what can I do for you?" he asked, his eyes flashing between us. He knew we both had weapons on our person. However, we knew he had a shotgun under the bar, and _plenty_ of security to contend with. "I need some information for a case." I said. Junior nodded slowly, picking up a wine glass from nearby, absently cleaning it. "What could I possible give you?" he asked. I smiled, "Intel on an old patron. One Yang Xiao Long." I said. The burly man paled, looking around frantically, "Did you bring that crazy bitch here?! Is she on her way?!" he asked, leaning in and whispering to us both. I shook my head, "No, my job's to _find_ Yang. I was hoping you could help me do that." I said.

He shook his head, "No way, no how. I am _not_ getting involved in _anything_ with her! She nearly fucking killed me the first time! I'd rather keep my ability to have children thank you very much." he said. Ren and I looked at one another, this was going nowhere. "Though," we both turned back to Junior at this, our eyes interested. "There is one person that may know." he said, quickly pointing across the bar. "Her name's Blake Belladonna, one of Yang's personal friends, though I'd guess they're a bit more than that. Either way, if anyone in this shithole town can tell you where Yang is, it's he." he said, going back to cleaning his counter. "Look kid, that's all I can do." he said. I chuckled, standing up, Ren following suit. "That's all we need." I said. One lead, that's it. We turned, walking towards the mysterious woman, who didn't seem to notice us until we were right up on her. "Can I help you gentlemen?" she asked, her voice bored and monotone. I smiled,

"Yes you can Blake Belladonna, we have _a lot_ to talk about."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter two: The runaway and the captain

 **A/n- A little fun fact for you guys, the original name of this series was Jaune Valentine: Vale Detective**

The woman's eyes widened as she stood, reaching towards her hip. I saw Ren reaching into his jacket out of the corner of my eye, but I held out a hand, stopping him. "Not yet." I whispered towards him. He grunted, standing back up straight, but keeping his right hand in his jacket, ready to draw. "How do you know my name?" Blake asked, glaring daggers at the two of us. I looked over at her, taking her in. She was a pretty girl, around my age maybe, though she looked _much_ more mature. She was dressed in a form fitting black dress, hugging her curves in all the right places, stopping around her mid-thigh, showing a little bit of cleavage. Beneath that she was wearing fishnet stockings and black high heels. Her hair was loose and flowing, resting on top of her chest, black and near perfect. Her eyes were sharp, quick, but afraid. The eyes of a runaway if I'd ever seen them. They were pretty eyes though, a brilliant shade of amber. Though her most notable feature had to be the black bow on her head, and based on the way it twitched when we confronted her, it hid _quite_ the secret.

"Junior told us." I said, jerking my thumb over at the bartender. Blake proceeded to glare at him, to which his only response was to look away, whistling incredibly off-key. She turned back to me, amber eyes meeting blue one's before she sighed, "What do you want with me?" she asked. I smiled, holding up two hands in a gesture of non-aggression. "All we want is to find Yang Xiao Long. We heard you know her?" I asked. I saw the spark of recognition in her eyes. She knew her alright. "I don't know. She… the last time we met things… didn't go over well…" she said, looking off to the left, her mouth twisting into a frown. I took a step forwards, my eyes showing sympathy, something I'd become rather good at recently. "What happened Blake?" I asked, frowning at her. She seemed to buy the sympathetic act, mostly since it was only half an act, and complied. "I don't know why I'm telling you this but, we had a bit of a falling out over my… recent, decision." she said, looking away from me, seemingly very interested in a random person to our left.

"Why did she get so upset?" I asked. She turned back to me, her eyes sparkling with sadness, and if she were anyone else I was almost certain she'd be crying. Though, I saw something else in her eyes, a kind of inner strength and hardness you could only get from a hard life. "This isn't a good place to talk about this, the walls have ears." she said, glaring over her shoulder, seeing a man with red sunglasses looking at her. Of course, the moment she turned to look at him, he turned around, trying, and failing, to look inconspicuous. I nodded, "There someplace we can go to speak more privately?" I asked. Blake looked around, as if thinking, then an idea seemed to hit her, her eyes darting over behind me. "Yeah, follow me. One of you." she said. I looked back at Ren, cocking an eyebrow in an unspoken question. "You're up Jaune." he said, walking back towards the bar.

I looked at Blake, nodding, "I'm with you." I said. She smiled, standing up and walking over to me with a cat-like strut. "What's say we get out of here huh?~" she said, putting a seductive tone to her voice, leaning in towards my ear. "Play along, anyone watching can't know about this." she said. I nodded, smiling up at her, "Yeah, let's go doll." I said, grabbing her hand and standing up. She started walking towards the staircase, me following silently behind her. I gave a quick glance over my shoulder, seeing Ren scanning the crowd. This was our standard routine, someone doesn't want us both, then one goes with them, the other hangs back and makes sure no one interrupts. I turned back ahead, following behind Blake up the stairs, up two flights before we turned in. She opened a door, walking forwards slowly, the clacking of her black heels hitting against the floor the only sound I could hear, the music from the below fading away, the thumping of the base the only thing telling me it was still there.

She stopped at an unassuming door, just a small one in the long hallway, one of four similar doors. She reached a hand into her cleavage, quickly producing a key. "Why did you-" "My dress doesn't have pockets." she interrupted, glaring at me, her smile and seductive manner all but vanishing now that we were alone. I nodded, not speaking again until she opened the door, quickly locking it behind us. "You gonna talk now Blake?" I asked, frowning at her. She nodded, meeting my frown with one of her own. "Yeah, but take off the trilby and the jacket." she said. I glared at her, but complied anyway, "It's a fedora, and a trench coat." I said bluntly. She shrugged, walking next to the door and slipping off her high heels, revealing two, perfectly maintained feet. "Whatever, just lay them on the bed." she said, pointing towards the small, single mattress.

I compiled, haphazardly tossing my signature hat and coat onto the bed, then I looked back at her. "Why so much secrecy?" I asked. She walked towards me, standing only a few inches away, ready to pounce at me at any second. "My whole goal here is to blend in, hard to do that when a detective's talking to you." she said. I looked up at her bow, then back at her. "The bow's not really helping your case sweetheart." I said somewhat sarcastically. She growled at me, but not a second later she reached up, undoing the bow and holding it in her right hand. She tossed it on the bed, putting a hand on her hip as she glared at me, "Better?" she asked. Beneath her bow was, as I expected, two faunus ears. Cat one's more specifically, a bit of pink felt exposed beneath the black fur. I nodded, "Why not just wear a hat? Be easier to get away with than a bow." I asked, gesturing towards my own fedora.

She sighed, "I just… I like the bow okay? Besides, how many women wear hats? How would I blend in then?" she asked. I chuckled, "I don't know, be less gorgeous?" I said, giving her a small smirk. She scoffed, then she froze up, her ears going rigid. "Sit down on the chair, now." she said, pointing towards the armchair behind me. I gave her an odd look, but complied anyway. Not a few seconds later I heard her doorknob moving, someone trying to get in. I blushed bright red as I saw Blake walk over, sliding her stocking-covered legs over my own, sitting in my lap. I felt her arms wrap around my neck as she tilted my head up, amber eyes meeting deep blue one's again. "Wrap your arms around me." she whispered. I complied, wrapping my arms around her back, pulling her a bit closer to me. A few seconds of awkwardness later, the door opened.

Blake pulled off the surprised girl act _flawlessly_ , turning around with a shocked expression. "J… Junior! What're you doing here!?" she asked. I just froze up, completely motionless. The tall bartender looked between the two of us for a few seconds before he turned around, "Put a damn sock on the door next time Blake." he said, shutting the door and, if the small knob on the side was anything to go by, relocking it. Blake sighed, pulling away from me. "Picks the worst times…" she said, looking back at me. I just sat there, my mind trying to comprehend what the hell had just happened. She blushed, "It's not a big deal! Don't make it one! This'll keep him from coming back." she said. I shook my head, snapping myself out of my daze as I stood up, grabbing my trench coat. "Well… if he won't come back I guess that's fine." she said, looking at me oddly.

I turned back to her, "Anyway, are you going to answer my questions now?" I asked. She nodded, walking over to the chair and sitting down. She pointed to another chair, this one simply made of metal. I got her meaning, grabbing the chair and swinging it around in front of her, making it so that I was slightly to her right, looking at it from the door anyway. "If I say so, bury your head in between my thighs, got it?" she asked. I blushed bright red as I looked around, "Why?!" I asked. She sighed, "So it'll look like I took you up here for a good time and not to answer questions. Nevermind that, you wanted to ask questions? Go ahead." she said.

"You said things didn't go over well with Yang, how did that go might I ask?" I said. She sighed, looking off to the right as I saw the strong, confident persona crack a little. I saw why she kept it strong, since without it, it was _painfully_ obvious how scared she was. "I told her I was a faunus, that I used to be in the White Fang. I told her about Adam, I told her everything about me." she said, a look of regret on her face. I nodded slowly, " _The White Fang, maybe they're mixed up in this?_ " I thought. I decided to ask another question, about something else she'd said. "You said she was angry about your decision, what was it?" I asked. I saw her right arm grip at her left elbow, her skin turning white around it as she looked down. "I told her I was leaving her." she said quietly.

I didn't speak for a moment, absorbing the information for a few seconds. "So… you two were a thing?" I asked. She looked at me for a few seconds, tortured amber eyes meeting my own, before she nodded. "Yeah. She said… she always said that I was her little kitty." she said, getting a small smile on her face. That smile though, was quickly extinguished by the frown that came after. "She asked me why, and I told her, about everything. I'd been keeping it a secret from her for almost a year now, I just… I just couldn't do it anymore. I didn't _want_ her as a part of my old life… but she wouldn't give it up." she said, her eyes swimming with tears at this stage. I gave her a sympathetic look, "She was stubborn wasn't she?" I asked. Blake nodded, not speaking as a small smile found it's way onto her face. "But she didn't know, she didn't know…" she said, her sentence pierced with strained sobs.

I couldn't take it anymore, and I moved my chair closer, placing a consoling hand on her shoulder. "It must be hard but… I need to know everything you can tell me about Yang, _especially_ about her whereabouts." I said. She sniffed, reaching over to a nightstand and grabbing a tissue, wiping the tears from her eyes. "I told her about Adam… about my daughter and my… problem. She told me not to worry… she told me she'd make it right. She said she was going to see someone… the Ice Queen." she said, clearly struggling to keep talking straight. I nodded, standing up before I leaned down, wrapping my arms around her. She froze in shock for a moment, but then she melted, leaning in and wrapping her arms around me. "I'm so sorry for bringing this up Blake." I said, patting her back as I felt her quietly sobbing into my shoulder.

It was a few minutes later when she stopped, looking back up at me. "Why are you asking about Yang anyway?" she asked. I frowned as I grabbed my fedora, putting it back on my head. "She's gone missing, and her sister hired me to find her." I said. The moment I said this her eyes went wide, she stood, hastily grabbing the cloth and tying it back into a bow. "You shouldn't have come here." she said quickly, slipping on her high heels and placing a hand on my back, guiding me towards the girl. I looked back at her, my eyes widening, "Woah! Woah! What the hell?!" I asked, but then, I saw the look in her eyes.

It was a look of sheer _terror_.

"Don't tell Ruby I talked to you! Don't even _mention_ my name!" she said, pushing me out the door and slamming it behind me. I looked at the door oddly for a few seconds, " _What did I say that got her so scared? Was it Ruby?_ " I thought. I thought back to my meeting with the girl, the adorable clothes, the innocence in her eyes, the child like voice and awkward aura she seemed to give off. "No… couldn't be that. Probably just… stayed a little too long." I muttered, turning and walking towards the door. When I opened it, I found I wasn't alone in the stairwell. Someone else was walking up. This someone revealed who they were when they spoke, even in the slightly dim lighting of the stairwell. "Jaune, we've got company." Ren said, two magenta eyes looking back at me. I looked down, seeing him holding his weapon, 'Stormflower', he called it.

What it actually was was an automatic pistol, a MAC10 more specifically. Thirty one-bullets in the mag, one in the chamber. Fully auto and painted dark green, Ren's signature color. I pulled out Crocea Mors, which was really just a standard issue Smith and Wesson model 31, and gripped it, feeling the familiar weight settling in my palm. "Who're we dealing with?" I asked. He looked back down the stairwell, aiming his weapon at the door. "You're about to find out." he said. Not a second later I saw the door near the bottom burst open, two men rushing in. It wasn't hard to recognize them, what with the uniform's and all. They had on patched-up three piece suits, trilby's on their heads. They were both carrying Tommy guns, both slowly aiming up. When they aimed at us, I figured out instantly what gang they were in.

After all, who else wears those ugly ass masks?

"AHH!" I heard a voice yell from upstairs. " _Blake._ " I thought as I turned around, Ren opening fire on the two thugs as I felt the ringing in my ears. I rushed through the door, seeing one man carrying a struggling Blake from her bedroom, still in her dress. I aimed at the one with the gun pointed at her, who'd yet to notice me. I fired once, it was all it took. He flew back, his mask shattered, bright red now, and landed on the ground, sprawling out, motionless. I aimed at the other man, firing two bullets, one into each hand. "GAH!" he yelled, falling back as he let Blake drop to the ground. I was going to finish him off when Blake leaned, grabbing the small pistol off the man's waist.

BANG! BANG! BANG!

She fired three shots, her eyes filled with a fury I would've never thought possible for the normally stoic faunus. Even after the three, when the gang member was _obviously_ dead, seriously, you couldn't even see his face, she kept shooting, firing off the whole mag. I dashed over to her as she fired the last bullet. I grabbed her arm, but she swung out, thrashing against my grip. "No! NO!" she yelled. I grabbed both her hands, holding them to her sides as I leaned down, my calm gaze meeting her panicked one. "Blake! Blake! Stay with me! It's me! Jaune!" I said. She blinked a few times, her chest slowing its' rapid movements as she seemed to calm down. "Jaune…" she said, her cold front removed and her expression more afraid than I'd ever seen it.

"Get what you can, we're getting you out of here!" I said quickly, the sound of Ren shooting Stormflower travelling down the hallway. She nodded, dashing into her room as I aimed down the hall, the only direction anyone would come from, unless they got past Ren. It was maybe thirty seconds later that Blake ran out, her outfit the same, but changing the high heels for a pair of black slippers instead. She had a backpack on, filled to the brim. "I take it you were preparing for this?" I asked. She looked over at me before she nodded, reaching into her bag. My eyes widened a bit when she pulled out a small pistol, a Colt M1911. "Yeah, I just didn't think they'd find me so soon." she said. I nodded, reaching out and grabbing her wrist. "Come on, Ren can drive us somewhere safe." I said.

I felt a bit of hesitation from her, she held fast against my grip. "Why are you helping me?" she asked, her eyes narrowing. I gave her an odd look, "Does it matter? I mean, it's come with me or get killed by these mask wearing freaks." I said. She shook her head, her eyes hardening. "It _does_ matter, you want something. What is it?" she asked. I groaned, "Look, we can hash out the details later, right now, we need to _go_." I said. She opened her mouth, only for the door behind her to break open, two White Fang grunts walking in, both with Tommy Guns. "THERE SHE IS!" one of them yelled, firing at us. "Get down!" I yelled through the hail of gunfire, pushing Blake down, holding her down with my left hand as I kneeled, quick drawing my pistol and killing the two grunts, both falling back, holes where their faces used to be. Blake looked up, my hand still between her ears. "Okay fine, not like I have much choice in the matter." she said, muttering the last phrase.

I smiled as I stood, helping her up before gripping her wrist again, rushing towards the stairwell Ren was blocking. I burst down the door, seeing Ren still standing there, four dead grunts at the bottom of the stairwell. Ren was just reloading, his eyes cold and hard as he did so with practiced movements. "We need to move now, before more show up." he said, giving me that familiar look. I knew what it meant, that this was the only opportunity we'd get to run. I nodded, moving Blake in front of me, "Come on, let's get going." I said. Ren nodded, grabbing Blake's hand as I let go. I spun around, aiming at the door behind us as I backed down the stairs. I heard a door opening, so I spun around again, " _Man, this is making me dizzy._ " I thought as I saw what had caused the sound.

Ren had opened the door, revealing there to be a club full of bodies, the scent of blood permeating the air. There were a lot of bodies, some of Junior's security, but _a lot_ more White Fang corpses. I saw Junior's customer's cowering beneath the tables, many of them with their heads in their hands, sobbing under the tables. I looked towards the exit, Ren doing the same, his eyes angry. I could see why, considering there was a tall grunt right in front of it, aiming his gun at us. "Time to die!" he yelled.

BANG! BANG!

The grunt fell, landing on the ground in front of us. I saw a black boot stomping on his back. "Remind me why I keep letting you two in here?" I smiled as I saw Junior standing on top of the fallen grunt, a cigar in one hand, a double barrel shotgun in the other, and both were smoking. Ren gave Junior a small smile, "We're good customers." he said simply. Junior chuckled, taking a puff of his cigar before exhaling, a cloud of smoke in the air. "Hehe, yeah, guess so. Get the kitten outta here, cleanup crews are working overtime tonight." he said. I nodded, grabbing Blake's hand and walking past the bartender, Ren following behind as we walked towards his car. He reached into his jacket, putting Stormflower away as he unlocked the car, allowing me and Blake to slip into the backseat as he got in the driver side.

"Take us back to the office." I said, stowing Crocea Mors back in my trench coat. He nodded, buckling up before he backed out, driving down the road, and _easily_ going over the speed limit. Granted, we were in a hurry, so I was hardly one to complain. I pulled out my lighter, grabbing a cigar from my inside pocket. " _Need to get more, only got four left._ " I thought. I flicked the lighter, the end of my cigar catching fire as I breathed in, looking out the open window and watching the smoke roll out of my mouth as I slowly exhaled. "You got anymore of those?" Blake asked, looking over at me with a vague interest. I shrugged, grabbing another one, "Long as you aren't pregnant, go ahead." I said. Her faced turned a shade darker as she nodded, placing it in her mouth before grabbing a lighter from her bag. I saw her trying to flick it on, once, twice, three times, nothing happening. "Dammit." she muttered, a frustrated expression dominating her face.

I leaned over, our foreheads almost touching as the tips of our cigars met, mine lighting hers. Her eyes met mine as her face got a bit more red, her backing away and holding her cigar. "Thanks." she said simply, exhaling a smaller cloud of smoke from hers. " _Must have weaker lungs._ " I thought. I leaned back in the seat, stretching my arms out along the back seats headrests, content to sit like that, smoking my cigar and occasionally blowing smoke at the ceiling. Suddenly I saw the roof slide back, the gray sky exposed. "If you're gonna smoke in my car Jaune, put the damn top down." Ren said, glaring back at me. I nodded, puffing another cloud towards the sky as Blake did the same. "Right… always forget that." I said.

It was a few minutes later when I saw the office come into view, and I noticed immediately that a few things were off. First off, I didn't drive to work, I didn't own a car. Velvet didn't drive to work, she didn't own a car. Only Ren drove to work, and we were in his car. And there was a car right in front of the office. It wasn't just that that got my attention, it was the _type_ of car it was. Normally I'd think it was a client.

Then again, how many police officers would come to me for help?

When we pulled in I got straight out, "Blake, wait in the car." I said, nodding to Ren. He got my meaning, setting the top back on the car and rolling up the windows. "See anyone coming, get in the floorboard." Ren said, looking towards Blake. She nodded, taking a last puff of her cigar before putting it out in the small ashtray Ren kept in his car. " _Why does he have that again? Oh… right._ " I thought, remembering he had two smokers that normally rode in his car. Ren locked the car, shoving his keys in his pocket and reaching for his gun. "Keep it on standby." I said. Ren nodded, the two of us walking the rest of the way up in near silence, me with my hand on my cigar as I opened the door.

When I walked inside, the cluttered reception area greeted me. The only difference was that there normally wasn't someone sitting in that area… other than Velvet. Said faunus was behind the desk, staring at the person in the seat in fear. Granted, Velvet was a faunus, probably didn't have the _best_ experience with the police. The person sitting in the seat, whoever, was exactly the _opposite_ of what I had expected. What I'd expected was the guy that usually showed up when my agency had 'done something wrong' or was 'sticking our noses we shouldn't'. Big guy, tough and built like a house. This one was different. In honesty, I wouldn't have been surprised if the figure in front of me was a model or a movie star.

It was a woman, one of the few in the police force, with long, flowing crimson hair. It was pulled back into a ponytail, running almost halfway down her back (still smaller than Ren's though). Her skin was like mine, if a bit paler, and her eyes were sparkling green, filled with a sort of determination I rarely saw in Vale. She was dressed in the typical female police officers uniform, light blue shirt with dark blue pants, a belt containing the standard gun and mace can. Granted, the shirt looked a little small for her large chest, as she had the top two buttons undone, exposing a bit more cleavage than the more flat chested officers I'd encountered in the past. She had a badge over her right breast, but I didn't get time to read it before she uncrossed her legs, standing up. She was maybe an inch shorter than me, but still she radiated a commanding aura about her, even with the small smile on her face.

"Mr. Arc, it's a pleasure to finally meet you." she said. I nodded, extinguishing my cigar in the nearby ashtray and tossing it in the trash. When a cop was in front of you, you didn't just smoke a cigar, _especially_ indoors. "You act like it's hard to find me. That door's always open." I said, jerking my thumb over my shoulder at the door behind me. She gave me a slight glare before going back to the smile, "Well, sorry I missed the message. I've been trying to contact you for days now. Your secretary just keeps telling me you're out, and that I'd have to wait. I got tired of rejection, so I waited this time." she said, walking over towards me. I looked down, she was wearing bright red lipstick. "What do you want officer?" I asked. She shook her head, "I don't _want_ anything Mr. Arc. I've just been looking to speak with you for a while. You're just so damn elusive." she said. I cocked an eyebrow, looking over at Velvet, who just shrugged. "Who might you be anyway?" I asked. She giggled, "Where _are_ my manners today?" she said, just before she placed a hand over her badge.

"I am Pyrrha Nikos, Captain of the Vale City Police Department."


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter three: Captains and killers

I looked at the newly named Pyrrha as I shook her hand. She had a strong grip, she was a police officer for sure. I looked down her arm, seeing small but _incredibly_ defined muscles on them. My eyes darted back up to her face as she let go, determined green eyes meeting analytical blue ones. "Captain Nikos huh? Didn't know they were letting kids into the police force now." I said, feeling a foul taste at the back of my throat as I said it.

"Well, I _was_ accepted earlier than most. Usually you have to go through the police academy, and even then they only let you in at 21 or so." she said, smiling slightly. She was trying to be humble, to not brag, but I could see it, the confidence in her smile, the arrogance. It was well hidden, but it was there. She didn't think of herself as better than anyone, she _knew_ she was.

"So, Captain Nikos… what brings you to my office?" I asked. No police officer, and I mean _no_ police officer would come into my office for a meeting or a social call. Something in the woman's smile changed for a split second. Brief and nearly unnoticeable, but it was there.

Desperation.

"Please, just call me Pyrrha. Regardless Mr. Arc, I'm not here as a police officer. I'm here as a client." she said. I gave her an odd look as I turned my gaze towards Ren. I gave him a curt nod, one he seemed to understand. He relaxed, no longer having his hand in his jacket. "You wanna talk business, fine, let's head upstairs." I said, pointing towards the door behind her. She nodded, turning around and walking over there, Velvet's watchful eyes staring at her as she walked up the steps. "I don't trust her." Velvet said.

I nodded, "Yeah, I don't either. If you hear anything unusual, send Ren up." I said, referring to her enhanced faunus senses of hearing. She nodded, and without another word I walked up the stairs, heading for my office. When I got up, I saw Pyrrha standing in the hallway, waiting just outside my door. She gestured inside, clearly asking me to go first. I complied, walking in, keeping an eye out behind me, just in case. Though, by the time I got to my desk, and her into the chair, I was fairly certain she wasn't about to attack me for some odd reason. "So, Pyrrha… what can I do for you?" I asked, giving her a small smile as I placed my hands like I normally did, steeples.

Her smile faltered for a brief second, but then went back to normal, as if catching on that I was watching. "I have a problem… isn't that why most people come to you?" she asked, giving me a somewhat cocky smirk, as if she were just having fun. I nodded, "Well, most people yes. Some though, come because I've _caused_ a problem for them, and they wanna fix it. So… which are you?" I asked. She sighed, lightly twisting a strand of her long, crimson hair as, for the first time since I'd seen her, she relaxed a bit, her muscle seeming to loosen up. "The former I'm afraid. You see… a case of mine was dropped recently, determined cold. I just… I _know_ I can still solve it, something's wrong." she said.

I nodded, "Blue hunch huh? Yeah, I know the feeling." I said, though, that wasn't what _I_ called it. I'd had it many times myself, the slight itch in the back of my head, the slight sense of discomfort, the feeling of leaving… unfinished business. I called it my 'detective sense', like a spidey sense for detectives almost. It had solved me plenty of cases the police couldn't. "Exactly. It was on a thief, we'd stacked a case against him, grand larceny, theft, murder… then we just dropped it." she said.

I cocked an eyebrow, "The charges were dropped eh?" I said, reaching into my coat and grabbing my notebook, opening it to a blank page. She shook her head, her eyes hardening. "They were dropped since Torchwick was cold on the floor when we got there." she said, any trace of kindness and sincerity gone. Right now, she was _all_ business. I nodded slowly, scribbling out the words 'Torchwick Snuffed Case' on the top of the page, the header, right next to the page that had 'Gone Blonde Case'.

"So, the man's dead… well, seems to me your job's done." I said. I'd heard of some crazy stuff in Vale after all, but no one, and I mean _no one_ , had ever come back from the dead. She shook her head again, her mouth twisting in a bit of annoyance, "That's what the rest of the department said too. Then they started piling up…" she said, looking down, her fists clenching in her lap. I frowned, ready to write down anything useful she said. "What did Pyrrha?" I asked.

"The bodies. At first we thought it was just a murder… then we noticed the pattern. Every last one… every last one was somehow related to Torchwick. His informants, his ex-wife, even his daughter… well, one of them anyway. His dealer, his _everything_. All the records of him were even burned in a freak accident. On any official record… Roman Torchwick doesn't exist." she said. I nodded, scribbling what she said… at least, the gist of it, in my notebook. A man dead and _suddenly_ everything about him starts disappearing? Yeah, that didn't sound quite right to me either.

"I see… did you get a DNA test on the body? Prove it's really Torchwick?" I asked. Sometimes criminals would leave false bodies in place of themselves, fake their own death. Maybe Torchwick was smart enough to do so? Pyrrha shook her head, "We tested the body, 100% match, down to the last chromosome. That _was_ Roman Torchwick. The question I have is… if he's gone, who's killing all these people?" she asked. I scribbled more down in my notebook, then I shut it, laying it off to the side. I reached to the corner of my desk, grabbing one of my other notebooks. This one was black, one of the first notebooks I ever filled up. "If my I remember correctly, I had a similar case a long time ago, when I first opened the agency." I said, flipping through the pages of my old notes, the pages yellowed with age. Two years would do that to them.

"What happened during that case?" Pyrrha asked, leaning closer with inquisitive eyes. I moved my notebook back, keeping her from seeing inside it as I flipped through the pages. "Sorry Captain, this is classified material." I said, giving her a small smirk. She huffed, but I could see the ghost of a smile on her face. I turned my eyes back to the pages, my eyes scanning for one name in particular. "Found you." I muttered, laying the book down on the desk. The case itself took up two pages, one of the more intricate one's I'd done in my history as a detective. The name of the case was "Dead men walking". There was a large stamp right next to the name of the case. CASE CLOSED written in large, red letters, though now they almost looked black with the age of the entry. "There was a group of people that went around robbing banks a few years back. One guy said he took the mask off, turned out it was someone that had _died_ three months earlier. When I started the case, I thought it was just some kind of wackos hallucination. Though, when I caught the culprit, I realized they were all too serious." I said.

Pyrrha giggled, "So what, some 'sorcerer' brought them back to life?" she asked sarcastically. The look I gave her sent her right back into that serious mode she had abandoned for a moment. "In a sense, yes. The victim's were fed a certain mixture of chemicals, formed into a powder. The only one I'm for certain of was Absinthe, the other's could be a range of different ones. Regardless, when the subject was fed the powder, their body would become completely unresponsive, their heart would stop, and even their brain activity would cease for a while. When they were pronounced dead and in a morgue, the body was recovered by the 'sorcerer', and then fed a different type of powder. This caused them to be completely subservient to their new master. They were brain-dead slaves in the most basic sense." I said.

Pyrrha's eyes were getting wider and wider as I spoke, "Who was the culprit?" she asked, her mouth slightly opening from the simple shock of this. I looked down the page, smiling when I saw the culprit. "You walked right past him earlier. Name was Lie Ren." I said. She almost flinched back, looking around, as if suddenly nervous. Though, that may have been because of the sudden thunder strike outside. "You mean to tell me you work with an ex-criminal!?" she asked, her voice betraying hints of her nervousness towards the situation. I nodded, closing the notebook and reaching into a draw, grabbing out a cigarette. Not as strong as my cigars, but they were cheaper, and it would do. I placed it in my mouth, grabbing my lighter and flicking it on, the tip glowing in the dimming light of my office.

I let out a puff of smoke towards the ceiling, smiling as I saw it dissipate against the lazily spinning fan on the ceiling. "Yep. Ren's been a criminal for a long time, longer than I've been a detective even. That was _hardly_ the worst one he'd ever done. Still though, the police chief and I… struck a deal I guess." I said, taking the cigarette out of my mouth and puffing some smoke towards Pyrrha. She coughed, waving the smoke away, "Why would Chief Ozpin work with you so directly?" she asked. I could help smile on my face as I let out another puff of smoke, this one heading straight up. I sighed, "Why indeed? The chief's always been an… eccentric man. Course, when I showed him Ren's skills, and convinced him what I could do, it was pretty easy to get the charges dropped." I said.

She glared at me, "You're still guilty of abetting a criminal!" she said, suddenly standing up, reaching for her hip. I stood, faster than her, quickly grabbing my gun and pointing it at her head. She froze, her hand near her hip as she looked up at me. All of my laid back attitude replaced with a deadly seriousness. "You _don't_ wanna get in a gunfight with me captain. You might be trained, but I'm the fastest quick draw this side of Vale." I said, pressing the barrel into her forehead. She glared at me, leaning back and sitting down again. I put my gun away in my coat, placing my cigarette back between my lips as I inhaled, but I didn't feel a thing. I _was_ used to cigars afterall. "You've got a lot of nerve to pull a gun on an officer." Pyrrha said, glaring at me with that unwavering determination, or perhaps it was something else… defiance?

"You would've pulled yours on me. I'm well within my rights to defend myself if I feel my life is at risk. This is _my_ agency after all." I said, glaring right back at her. Most people wouldn't even _dream_ of staring down a police officers, let alone the captain herself.

Of course, I wasn't _most_ people, now was I?

We sat like that, glaring at each other, for what must've been five, maybe ten mintues. Until eventually, she looked away, sighing. "Can you help me or not?" she asked. I could sense the hopelessness and desperation in her voice, she wasn't even trying to hide it now. I nodded, "Of course Pyrrha. That _is_ my job after all." I said. She nodded, reaching into her pocket. I saw her pull out a few cards of lien, the same amount that Ruby had given me earlier. "Half now, half later. That's how you work isn't it?" she asked. I nodded, grabbing the lien and sticking them in my coat, right next to Ruby's. "If that's the way you wanna do it, then yes. I'll get to work on this case, but it may take some time." I said.

She nodded, "Well, don't forget, the longer you take, the more people that die." she said. I nodded, standing back up and walking towards the door. I looked back at her near the doorway, snuffing out my cigarette in the ashtray I kept next to the door. "Come on, I'll walk you out." I said simply. She looked at me, green eyes seemingly taking in my form for a few seconds before she made up her mind, standing up and walking towards me without a word. We didn't speak as we walked down the hall, past the empty rooms and down the stairs. When we got to the bottom, Ren was standing right there, looking between the two of us. Pyrrha walked up to Ren, glaring at him as she met his eyes. It would've been intimidating… if Pyrrha wasn't like three inches shorter than Ren. "I'm watching you." she said, glaring at him. Ren just smirked, his eyes narrowing a bit. One of the few expressions I'd seen him do. "Sorry, I'm spoken for." he said.

Pyrrha scoffed as she turned away, walking out the door as I walked behind her. When we walked outside, her heading for her car, I looked back at Ren's, seeing a flash of black as Blake likely dove into the floor. Pyrrha either didn't notice or didn't care, since she walked back to her police cruiser without a word. I heard it roaring to life as she sped out of the lot, back onto the main road. I turned back to Ren's car, taking two steps towards it. I pulled opened the door, Ren didn't bother locking it when he had his keys, only for Blake to tumble out. She landed on her backpack, looking up at me. I looked away, "Cover up." I said. I saw her look down out of my peripheral vision, her face turning bright red. When she fell out it seemed that her dress had wanted to stay, it slipping down and exposing her breasts. I calmly kept my eyes away from her as I heard her standing up, likely fixing her top. "Better?" I asked, not turning around.

"Better." she said. I turned, smiling slightly as I saw her fixing her hair back, her bow back in place on top of her head. She seemed to have fixed it while waiting for me to get out with Pyrrha. She walked towards the door, I simply followed, walking right next to her until she pushed open the door, walking back into the reception area. Velvet smiled at Blake, then looked at me. "Who's this Jaune?" she asked. I looked over, seeing Blake just looking around the place. She was either disgusted by how dirty it looked, or just noticing how dirty it looked. With this girl, I really couldn't tell. "This is Blake Belladonna. She'll be staying with us for awhile." I said. Ren gave me an odd look, raising an eyebrow before he pointed upstairs. "Yes, there." I said. He shrugged, leaning back against one of the filing cabinets nearby.

Blake was, surprisingly, the first one to speak up. "What do you mean there? What makes you think I'm staying?" she asked, glaring back at me. I walked over to the stairwell, standing next to the door before I pointed up. "There's a guest room nearby, it's a few doors down from my own. I think you'll stay since the White Fang have probably already ransacked your house. They know everything about you Blake, but they don't know you're here." I said. The White Fang were _nothing_ if not thorough. They'd track down Blake, her parents, her children, hell, even her _pets_ if it came down to it. Velvet gave Blake a cute little smile, "It _would_ be nice to have another girl around here… and another faunus at that." she said, lightly wiggling her ears. Blake gave her a confused looked, about to speak when I heard another voice. One I hadn't expected to hear.

"Uncle Jaune!" I heard a high voice say as someone tackled my leg. I looked down, smiling down at the young girl. She had dark grey eyes, but other than that, she looked _just_ like her mother. She had tiny little rabbit ears on her head, barely stubs at this stage, and long brown hair that stretched almost to her waist. She jumped up, clinging onto my leg almost six or seven inches off the ground. She was giving me a wide smile as she nuzzled into my knee. "Did you miss me? Did you miss me?" she asked rapidly, quickly climbing up until she was gripping at my trench coat. I reached down, holding out my left arm as she gripped onto it, swinging lightly as I felt hyer her light weight hanging off near my elbow. "Nope." I said sarcastically, rubbing between her ears. She gave a little giggle before her eyes finally met Blake's. Blake, unlike the smiles of the rest of us, had a small frown. "Why are you sad?" Ton-Ton asked, jumping off of my arm and walking towards Blake, giving her a concerned gaze.

Blake smiled down at her, but I could see the tears collecting in her eyes. "It's nothing sweetie. I'm just… not having the best day is all." she said. Ton-Ton walked towards her, but she was quickly scooped up, held like a baby in her mother's arms. "That's enough sweetie, the nice lady has been through enough for today. Now how about we go play?" she asked, smiling down at her daughter. "YAY!" Ton-Ton said, a bright smile on her face as Velvet walked back towards her desk. She was probably going to get one of those animal plushies or something like that, play with her daughter for a few hours. I would ask why she was here, but by now I just accepted that Ton-Ton could be literally anywhere when I wasn't looking directly at her.

I grabbed Blake's wrist, tearing her out of what almost seemed like a trance. "Come on, I'll show you to your room." I said, grabbing a key off the wall from behind Velvet's desk, and I just saw her pulling out a black bear plushie. Guess I was right. I started walking up the stairs, going past my office and towards the door at the end of the hallway. I turned the key in the lock, opening the door and flicking on the lights without another word. Inside was a… fairly nice room I guessed. It had a single bed, a lamp on the side, a bookshelf, Blake's eyes seemed immediately drawn to that, a dresser, and a small kitchen area. In the kitchen there was a sink, a fridge, and a few cabinets, but that was about it. There were only really maybe twenty or thirty feet to move around it comfortably, space occupied by only carpet.

Blake walked over towards the chair next to the nightstand… oh yeah, that's also there, and sat down, looking around at her new surroundings. "Why is this even here?" she asked. I smiled, shutting the door behind me and sitting down on the bed, the old springs creaking against my weight, and I wasn't _that_ heavy to begin with! "Simple really. This place _used_ to be an old apartment building. It went into disuse after awhile, so I bought the placed, fixed it up, and now it's my office building. Course, I never got rid of the furniture inside, never found a use for that much space." I said. She nodded, reaching over and grabbing a book from the nearby shelf, her eyes widening as she saw the title. It was an old romance novel titled 'NInjas of love Vol II'. "Course that's still up here." I muttered, looking away.

Blake gave me an odd look. "Why's this here? I've been looking everywhere for this book." she said. Now it was my turn to raise an eyebrow. Ninjas of love was recently classified under the title 'Erotic novel', despite there being no real sexual content in it. For a girl like Blake… actually it wasn't that unbelievable, nevermind. "Last one was a cliffhanger, I couldn't _not_ read the second one. I did a case for the girl that wrote the books, she gave me a copy early on." I said. Blake's eyes widened as she almost jumped towards me, dropping the book back on the bed. "You _met_ the author!? Who is she!?" she asked. I should've seen _that_ coming. The author of Ninjas of love wrote the books anonymously, going by the pen name 'The Author', appropriately. Even when I met her she only had me call her Lena, which I could tell in an instant wasn't her real name.

"She called herself Lena, that's all I know. Now," I said as I grabbed her shoulders, lightly moving her out of the way of the door. "I've got a case to work on, and a blonde to find. Just come find one of us if you need anything." I said, shutting the door behind me without another word. I walked down the hall, heading for the reception area. I smiled when I got down, seeing Ren playing on the floor with Ton-Ton. He had a small smile on his face as he moved around the small, black bear plushy, giving it a goofy voice. Though, I was far enough away that I couldn't make out the words. I looked around, walking towards Velvet when I saw her. She was sitting in her familiar chair, one arm propped on the desk as she watched my partner playing with her daughter, a wistful smile on her face. "He's so good with her…" she muttered, her eyes watching Ren and Ton-Ton play along the floor of the office.

"Ahem." I said, coughing into my hand to get her attention. Velvet turned, her face slightly flushed as I knocked her out of her little daydream. She stood back up straight, smiling at me. "Sorry Jaune, did you need something?" she asked. I nodded, walking towards the phone. I picked up the receiver, placing my finger on the dial. "Did Ruby leave any information? A way to contact her or something?" I asked, as Ruby hadn't given me anything of the sort. Usually when someone did that they left their information with Velvet or something to that effect. Velvet nodded, leaning down and opening a drawer, rummaging through it for a moment until she pulled out a small slip of paper, handing it to me. "She gave me that phone number, that was it. No last name odd enough, just Ruby." she said.

" _Probably couldn't be bothered to write Xiao Long after her name_." I thought as I looked down, dialing the number, spinning around the wheel. I heard it ring twice before someone picked up. "Hello?" they asked. I smiled, I'd recognize the childish high voice anywhere. "Hey, Ruby, it's me, Jaune." I said. I heard a light squeak from the other end of the line, followed by a bit of rustling. "Close your eyes! I'm not decent yet!" she said. I couldn't help the smile that sprung to my face. She _must've_ been trying to be that cute, there was no way she was like that naturally. "Ruby… we're talking over the phone. I'm not _actually_ in the room with you." I said. I heard the noise on the other end suddenly stop, and I had to suppress a laugh at the image of Ruby, likely in her pajamas and holding the phone above her head, suddenly freezing up. "Oh… hehe, I knew that silly!" she said.

"Nevermind that now Ruby." I said. "I've got some information from… a certain someone. They told me where Yang might be." I said, remembering Blake's warning about not using her name. I heard Ruby squeal on the other end of the line. "Oh thankyouthankyouthankyou! Where was it!?" she asked. I shook my head, heaving out a sigh over the line. "Listen Ruby, I don't _know_ where she is yet, I need you to tell me something. Does the term 'Ice Queen' ring a bell to you?" I asked. Blake never _really_ explained what that meant. Ruby giggled on the other end of the line, her voice sounding a little distorted over the line. "Oh, that's just Weiss! Yang probably went to see one of her shows!" Ruby said. I nodded, thinking through a list of Weiss's I knew in Vale… which took like one second, there was only one Weiss I knew of.

" _Weiss Schnee huh? Hadn't thought we'd get her mixed up in this._ " I thought, interrupting whatever Ruby had said, it sounded something like 'cookies' though. "Thanks Ruby, that's all I need. With any luck I'll get your sister back soon." I said. I heard Ruby say someone on the other end, but it was hard to make out. She said goodbye and that was it, the line clicked dead. Ren looked up at me when I put the phone down, his eyes burning with that all too familiar curiosity. I nodded, "We've got a lead." I said, walking over towards him. Ren nodded, standing up, giving Ton-Ton one last look. I smiled as I looked down at her, getting down on my knees. "Me and Uncle Ren have to go okay Ton-Ton?" I said, smiling at her. She smiled right back, running over and jumping at me, locking her arms around my neck. "Okay… bye uncle Jaune! Bye Uncle Ren!" she said, jumping off of me and rushing to Ren, who gave her a hug like I did. We both stood as I patted her on the back, urging her towards her mother. "Alright, run along now." I said, pointing towards Velvet.

When me and Ren got outside, and I lit another cigar, Ren spoke again, "What've we got?" he asked, quickly opening the door to his car. I got in the front seat this time, pulling back to top as I blew a puff of smoke in the sky. "Weiss Schnee, that's who Yang went to see according to her sister. Blake mentioned something like it." I said. Ren nodded, taking a sharp right turn, through a red-light might I add. "The Dust till Dawn I take it?" he asked. The club he was referring to this time, the Dust till Dawn, was one of the more high end clubs in town. Whereas Junior's was where you went to get drunk, stumble home and pass out. The Dust till Dawn was the place you went to brag about getting drunk on high class drinks, have someone drive you home and, well, pass out. It was basically the _opposite_ end of the spectrum from Junior's bar.

Ren nodded, driving towards the old bar as I took the time to gather my thoughts. " _Hmm, wonder what the infamous Weiss Schnee looks like_?" I thought. I mean, you didn't get the title Ice Queen without being Ruthless or beautiful… or both… yeah I'll go with both. Supposedly the last known descendant of the Schnee family, she was one of the most feared women in Vale, maybe even _remnant_. Course I'd never _met_ the girl, but still, it was hard not to let the rumor's paint pictures for me. In what felt like no time at all we'd arrived, right outside the large, almost mansion-like building. Ren pulled his car between two much nicer one's, almost twice the size and almost _definitely_ more than twice the cost. Ren looked over at me. "Any advice Jaune?" he asked, gesturing to the club. I smirked,

"Pull on a coat. We are meeting the _ice_ queen after all."


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter four: Ice Queens and Crosshares

Ren sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose and shutting his eyes. "Any _real_ advice?" he asked, glaring at me. I chuckled, letting out another puff of smoke before inhaling, the edge of my cigar nearly lighting up my face. "Just be cool… so act normal." I said. Ren gave me a small smile before he got out of the car, shutting his door and taking the keys with him. I waited a few seconds before I got out too, shutting the door and walking up next to Ren. Ren just clicked a button, locking the doors on the car. We both walked towards the doors, and I started taking in my surroundings a bit more. The club was in the fancier part of town, that much was clear, and it wasn't like Junior's club, just a simple building downtown. This one actually had windows… they were covered and blacked out granted but, they had them.

The doors to the place were simple really, just one-way glass doors, no bouncer in sight. " _What is with clubs in Vale and not hiring bouncers?_ " I thought. I mean, I wasn't complaining, but still, it didn't make much sense. Me and Ren walked through, and the first thing I noticed? The temperature. It was _freezing_ compared to outside, easily a dozen degrees colder (fahrenheit, not celsius if it weren't obvious). Ren either didn't notice or didn't care, as he went straight towards the bar, as did I. Ren sat down at one of the stools, smiling slightly at the woman behind the counter. I pulled out a chair next to him, looking at the bartender. She was a few years older than us, or maybe a lot more, I couldn't really tell, that flowing white hair made it hard to discern age. She was wearing a black shirt with a white sweater-vest, a dark-blue bowtie around her neck. I let my eyes trail down, her shirt was a button-down, the top two buttons opened above her best, exposing a slight bit of cleavage. It was actually a fair amount, but considering the size of her chest, she likely had _plenty_ more to show.

Further down I saw that she was fairly skinny, with a small midsection, granted, she also had rather wide hips, and quite a large rear at that. She was pretty, that much was obvious. "Can I get you two anything?" she asked. I looked back up, a small smile on her face, piercing blue eyes meeting my own deeper ones. Her voice was mature, almost harmonic, and smooth too. " _Why isn't she singing?_ " I thought, as I saw a stage in the center of the room. I shook my head, "We're under-" "I'll take a glass of brandy." I heard Ren say, cutting me off. I looked at him oddly, but the bartender just nodded, smiling at the two of us. "Man of simple tastes huh?" the woman said, quickly reaching beneath the bar and grabbing out a glass. I looked back at Ren, leaning in closer, "Ren! We're both seventeen for Oum's sake! We shouldn't be drinking!" I said. Ren sighed, leaning over closer to me, to the point our foreheads were almost touching. He held up his hand towards the bartender, "Why are you so uptight about this? I've done _much_ worse than drink. Aren't you the one that chain smokes cigars?"

"What're we whispering about?" I heard the bartender say, her chin resting on Ren's hand. I nearly fell backward as Ren jumped back a bit, coughing and playing it off. I tried to but, there wasn't a chance I could do it as well as Ren. "How'd you hear us?" I asked, leaning my elbows on the table, crossing my arms as I normally did. The woman giggled, sliding the glass of brandy towards Ren, who gladly took it. "I was preoccupied, not deaf. Not to mention I was, what? Three feet away?" she said, giving me a small smirk. I looked off to the right, a light blush tinging my face. "You aren't concerned?" I asked, not moving my eyes from their place on the floor. I could easily hear the smile in her voice, "Not anymore I'm not. That busty blonde girl that comes here sometimes changed that a _long_ time ago." she said.

I turned back to her, my eyes a bit widened, "Wait, was her name Yang Xiao Long by chance?" I asked. The bartender lost her smile, her eyes widening like mine. "Oh you… are you one of her flings?" she asked, sporting a puzzled expression. Ren chuckled as I felt my face burn a bit brighter. I shook my head, "I'm a detective, her sister hired me to find her. We're looking for Weiss Schnee." I said. The woman let out a sigh, assumingly of relief. She moved the bottle of brandy back away from her before she spoke again, "Thank goodness. I was getting tired of escorting drunk teenagers looking for her. Cost me too much damn dignity…" she said, muttering the last sentence as I saw her, likely subconsciously, rubbing her rear. I shook my head, "Nevermind that, where's Weiss?" I asked. The woman shrugged, looking off towards the stage.

"She's got another performance scheduled an hour. If you want to wait here, that's fine." the woman said, smiling towards me. I sighed, looking towards Ren. He just shrugged, smiling behind his glass. "Don't see what choice we have." I muttered. The woman lightly tapped my shoulder, getting me to turn towards her. She gave me a small smile, "Or, I could always take the two of you backstage. If she's in a good mood… maybe she'll talk." she said. Ren downed the last of his glass, setting it back on the table before he gave me 'the look'. That same one that said 'Do it moron'. It was the one that told me the answer was right in front of me, and I needed to take the opportunity. I looked back at the woman. "Alright miss. Lead the way." I said, standing up. Ren did as well, giving me a look of approval.

The woman stepped out from the bar, revealing that she was wearing high heels, and turned, her hair whipping back a bit. The three of us walked towards the back door, one labeled 'Employees only", of course. She walked in without hesitation, me and Ren following behind. She was walking so quick that me and Ren had to nearly jog to keep up, and we were halfway down the hallway when the door shut behind us. "Weiss is at the far door at the end of the hall. Tell her Ruby sent you if you want a straight answer. I'll be at the bar if you need me." she said. She gave us one final smile before she sped back towards the other door, back to her bar. I turned around, looking at the door before us. It was a normal looking door, except it had an engraving of a snowflake on it, the handle down a bit lower than normal. I looked back at Ren, who just nodded, before I pushed open the door.

Inside, it was like we'd traveled to another world. The whole place was white, clean, and overall… perfect. There was no other word for it, the place was _perfect_. Everything was perfectly in place, as if someone had taken a ruler and painstakingly measured out everything to be exactly right. "Winter? Is that you?" I heard a voice ask. It sounded like the bartender, but higher pitched, more like a melody than a harmony. I looked around, seeing a figure walking towards us. She was beautiful, not a doubt in my mind about that one, and she looked like she knew it too. She had her nose pointed slightly upwards with an air I'd only seen among royalty in plays and movies, and she walked with the grace of a dancer. She looked almost like a younger version of the bartender, her eyes the same piercing blue, though with a bit more fire in them, and her hair the same shade of bleached white.

She was dressed in a long, white dress, stretching down to her ankles, nearly concealing the high-heels she wore. Around her neck and shoulders was what looked to be a white boa, pure white feathers stretching from one end to the next. She was wearing a bit of makeup, a touch-up of faded blue eyeshadow and a bit of red lipstick making her albino-like features all the more prominent. The only thing about her that wasn't perfect was the scar, long and right across her left eye. She looked down at us… actually up at us, since we were both a few inches taller than her, with disgust. "Ugh, what moron let you two back here?" she said, placing a hand on her left hip. I looked over, seeing Ren reaching for his coat, his eyes hardening. I gave him a look I knew he'd understand. " _Calm down and don't shoot anyone_." he understood as he always did, sighing as he put his hand back down, content to just glare at the girl.

"Ruby sent us Weiss." I said simply. This got her attention, her eyes widening as she stepped back, "How… how do you know Ruby?" she asked, her eyes darting around nervously. There it was again. Ruby. Blake was terrified, Winter seemed to understand something, and Weiss was nervous. What _was_ it with that girl? "She's my client. I'm looking for her sister. She supposedly went to see one of 'The Ice Queen's' shows. According to Ruby, you're the ice queen." I said. Weiss nearly growled, clenching her fists a few times. She breathed in, then out. In, out, as if trying to calm herself. "That dolt is getting on my last nerve… Yang never came to see me." she said, giving me a look that was more indifferent than disgusted.

"How's that possible? What other 'Ice Queen' is in Vale?" I asked. Weiss's eyes flashed for a moment as she looked towards the door. "That would be me." I heard a familiar voice say. I turned, seeing the bartender standing there, smiling towards us. She walked over, that same, cat-like strut she always seemed to have being incredibly prevalent as she walked up towards the three of us. "Winter. Yang came to see you right?" Weiss asked, looking towards the newly named bartender. Winter nodded, "That she did. It was during one of my more… interesting, performances." she said, giggling a bit at the end of it, an absolutely _devious_ smirk on her face. Ren spoke up, surprisingly, "Sorry but, how do you two know each other?" he asked.

"They're sisters, isn't it obvious?" I said, raising an eyebrow at him. The two girls looked at me in, if I was right, shock. "How did you know that?" they both asked in unison. I smiled, holding up my right hand as I let out a puff of my cigar, of which I'd nearly forgotten about at that point. "Simple. For starters, the two of you look nearly identical. Second of all, your voices are almost the same, Winter looks like an older version of you Weiss. Finally, even though you seem to have different mannerisms, the similarities are still there. The way Winter grabbed Ren's brandy and the way Weiss moved her hands around were almost the same." I said. Winter smiled, walking to a nearby couch and sitting down. Granted, the room we walked in _did_ have two of those. It looked more like an apartment to be honest.

"Impressive work. Now, tell me something you couldn't possibly have known." Winter said, smirking towards me. I couldn't help but smile as I looked down at her hands, "You were married once, six to eight months ago. It was an abusive bastard whose favorite brand was brandy." I said. She flinched back, her eyes widening as she covered her left hand. "How the hell did you know that?!" she asked, even Weiss and Ren seemed shocked. Weiss since she'd never seen me before and Ren since… well, I guess he'd forgotten a few things about me over the years. "Simple, the deep tan lines on your left ring finger. They've spread to a large area, but the skin around it isn't slightly wrinkled, meaning that you didn't have the ring on for long. There are slight indentations on the tip of your finger, meaning you couldn't get the ring off fast enough. When you touched the Brandy to get Ren's drink you nearly flinched back, and your fingertips were white with how hard you were clutching it. Based on your personality I'd say he also kicked the bucket recently." I said.

Winter blinked twice, then nodded, moving her hand behind her back. "You're right. I'm… impressed would be an understatement. Nevermind that, you aren't here to impressive us, you're here for Yang right?" she asked. Me and Ren both nodded, that _was_ our job after all. "Well, Yang asked me about the White Fang. I haven't the slightest clue _why_ but, that's her business. I told her I didn't know anything about it, though, I pointed her in the direction of someone that might know a bit more." she said. I nodded, looking over at Ren. Ren was simply watching the two girls, his eyes having the same, casual look as they normally did. "Well, who?" he asked. Winter shrugged, her eyes showing a sense of strange detachment. "I don't know. She only goes by a code-name. 'Cross-hares'. If a faunus looking to get away from the White Fang, Roses, or even Schnee's on occasion comes to me, I send them to her… well, except for the Schnee one's, they don't come to _me_ obviously." she said.

I nodded, the three biggest crime families in Vale. The Rose family: Ruthless and efficient, killing machines to put it simply. The White Fang were just ruthless and _horribly_ misguided faunus rights activists. The Schnee's? Money launderers… that was about all they did, but they _did_ fund the Rose family. "So… what? She runs like a gang-protection service or something?" I asked. Winter nodded, sitting down and laying her hands in her lap. "Yes. If Yang wants the White Fang, she'll go to her. You'll find her here." she said, reaching behind her and pulling out a slip of paper, taking a pen from the table before she wrote down what I guessed was an address. She tossed me the slip of paper, me catching it before I looked down. " _129 Railroad Way? An abandoned warehouse… of course._ " I thought.

I nodded to Ren, who seemed to get the message, walking towards the door. "By the way detective. When you see Ruby, tell her to come down. It's been _far_ too long since I've seen her. Oh! Also, tell her to wear the Ladybug ones, she'll know what I mean." Weiss said, her eyes flashing with something I didn't recognize. I shrugged, nodding back to her as me and Ren left without another word. When the two of us got out to his car, finally, I extinguished my cigar in the back, tossing it out the window and deciding against lighting another one. "So… where are we going?" Ren asked, starting his car again. I looked down at the slip of paper, and quickly showed it to him. He nodded, pulling out and heading towards there, pulling the top back up on his car. "Jaune… something's off about Ruby, you know that right?" Ren asked, looking at me out of the corner of his eye.

"Yeah. Blake was terrified the moment I mentioned her name, Winter understood something, and Weiss seemed nervous. Something's not right with that little girl." I said, looking out at the rapidly passing streetlights. I shut my eyes, trying to think of a reason, _any_ reason, why Ruby would be an issue. Could she be a cop? No, why did I even think of that one? She's too young, and I could tell a cop when I saw one. Maybe she had a lot of influence? Her Dad could be a crime boss. Maybe… No, that didn't make sense. "Jaune… you've got that look on your face again." Ren said. The 'look' he was referring to, was the look I got when I was deep in thought about a case. At least, Ren _said_ I got the look, I didn't look in the mirror when I was deep in thought about things. "Trying to think why _Ruby_ of all people would get those kind of reactions… Ruby Xiao Long, what're you hiding?" I said, muttering the last sentence.

"What if she isn't Ruby Xiao Long?" Ren asked. I gave him an odd look, "Oh haha Ren, real funny." I said. He looked at me when we got to the red-light, his eyes hardened and his face dead-serious. "Jaune. When was the last time you saw me pull a prank or even _tell_ a joke?" He asked. I blinked twice, slowly looking away from him and back towards the road. "Riiiight. Okay, what's this theory on her then huh?" I said. The light turned green as Ren drove off to the right, heading into the less lit place of Vale, fewer streetlamps, fewer houses, and more industrial buildings than any other part of the city. "Maybe she took her mother's name? Or Yang took her mother's last name, or… you know, _something_ like that. Maybe… Maybe she's part of some big-time criminal empire or something." he said.

I sighed, "I don't think it's anything like _that_ but… yeah, I think we should be keeping a closer eye on her." I said. Ren nodded, his eyes focusing on his destination. We rode the rest of the way in silence, and after awhile, we came across our destination. It was an old warehouse, abandoned for a long time by the looks of it. Me and Ren got out of the car, him locking it again. I didn't blame him, I didn't trust this place anymore than a hungry hobo in an all you can eat buffet. I placed my hand in my jacket, grabbing onto my gun, Ren doing the same, as we walked forwards, heading towards the door to the warehouse. I noticed that, on the door, was a sign, "No trespassing, private property." I muttered. Ren nodded, walking up towards it. He quickly reached into his jacket, pulling out a screwdriver and a bobbypin.

Not thirty seconds later he had the door opened, it swinging open noiselessly on it's hinges. "We're in." he whispered. I nodded, walking in behind him and silently shutting the door. It was dark, but there was enough light from the windows outside to see by, so we just walked on, heading towards the door on the other side. Ren leaned down, getting out his bobbypin again, only for a pair of pure white eyes to greet us through a slot high-up on the door. "The hell you doin' here? We're closed!" they said, about to shut the door back. "We're looking for Cross-Hares." I said. The door opened not a second later, a man ushering us in. He was dressed in a patched up three-piece suit, a bright red tie around his neck, the same color as his hair. His skin was darker than most I'd seen, but his most notable feature had to be his eyes. They were pure white, not even a pupil, just pure white, like someone had taken an eraser to his eyes.

He ushered us in, "She's downstairs, teachin' some punkass kid a lesson." he said, chuckling lightly as she shut the door behind us, sitting back down on a chair next to the door. Me and Ren walked down a short hallway, into what looked like a large room. This room had a large, stadium like area, the edges surrounded by wire fences with barbed-wire at the top. There was a staircase leading down, blocked off by a small gate. The ring was lit up by spotlights on all sides, and in the center… was what looked like a brawl. Me and Ren opened the gate, walking down the stairway. There was a woman and a man… and it was _obvious_ the man was losing. He was a bit taller than me, his hair dark brown and styled in a crew-cut. He had on some tattered pants, his shirt gone, exposing his muscular physique. He was in bad shape, his face bloody, and the way his arm was… yeah, I was pretty sure it was broken.

When we got to the bottom, the woman jumped onto him, straddling him for a few seconds before she started wailing on his face. "DON'T! MESS! WITH! ME! WINCHESTER!" she yelled, separating each sentence with a punch to the man's face. I coughed, trying to get the attention of the woman in front of me. She stopped her assault on the man, turning around, brown eyes meeting my blue one's for a split second before she turned, picking up the man's head an inch before slamming it back to the ground. "Don't forget who's boss around here." she whispered into his ear, something I just barely heard. She stood, walking over towards us with a cat-like stride. She was dressed in a pair of bloody brown pants, stretching down to reveal her bare feet gliding across the concrete floor, a bit of brown nail polish on her toes. Above her waist she was wearing a small brown bra, really just a strip of cloth across her breasts, not doing much to cover her.

She was covered in a glaze of sweat, which, considering she'd just turned the man's face into pulp, that was to be expected. She let out a breath as she walked around us, grabbing a white towel and quickly wiping herself down, tossing it over her shoulder a moment later. She leaned down, grabbing, oddly enough, brown sunglasses and a brown beret, tossing them on before she smirked towards us. "What can I do you boys?" she asked, walking towards us. I looked off towards the unconscious, or dead, I couldn't tell, man. "Uhh, what was tha-" "He broke the rules. He got punished by me. That's what happens around here if you disobey." she said, cracking her knuckles. Ren looked over at me, nodding. I coughed, "Nevermind that. Are you Cross-Hares?" I asked. She smiled, bowing at the waist, looking up at the two of us over her sunglasses.

"Yeah, real name's Coco Adel if you don't mind." she said, standing back up, pushing her sunglasses back on her face. I nodded, looking around, "Alright Miss Adel, what is this place?" I asked. She chuckled, walking towards the stairs. "This is my Fight Club. Care for a round or two~" she asked, winking at me. I shook my head, "I'm more for gun combat myself." I said. She giggled, pushing down her sunglasses a bit. "I didn't mean in the ring~" she said. I gave her an odd look for a few seconds… then I felt my face explode into blush, the moment I figured out what she meant. "O-Oh… Uh, I'll pass." I said. I could tell Ren was just _dying_ of trying to hold in his laughter. She let her smirk settle back into a smile as she walked up, "Come to my office, then we'll talk." she said. Me and Ren silently followed her, but Ren decided to speak up this time. "You planning on taking her up on her offer Jaune?" he asked, giving me a small smirk.

I looked away, "Of course not." I said. He shrugged, turning back forwards as I did as well… then I looked away as I noticed that, if I looked straight ahead, I was staring right at her ass. "You can look if you want boys, I don't mind~" she said, winking back at us. Ren shrugged, still walking up the stairs with that stonewall expression he always had. "Why you ask? You plan on doing it?" I asked. He frowned, shaking his head. "Oh, I've got someone _much_ better, you know that by now." he said. I nodded, looking anywhere but right in front of me… which was actually getting surprisingly hard to do. For Ren… it wasn't that hard. After all, he had a girl of his own already, so resisting Coco? Not that hard.

When we finally got up the stairs, Coco lead us through a door off to the left of where the white-eyed man was. Inside, there was simply a desk, two chairs in front and one behind, and a few filing cabinets. The Coco sat down behind the desks, propping her feet up on top of it before she turned to us, pushing her sunglasses down on her face. "So, you're the two looking for Yang-a-Rang huh?" she asked. I felt my eyes widen a bit as even Ren seemed to freeze up for a second. Coco just laughed, "Oh please, did you _honestly_ think I wouldn't find out about you asking so many questions? You haven't exactly been _discreet_ about looking for Yang." she said. I looked back towards her, leaning in towards the desk. "Can you help us Coco?" I asked. She yawned, reaching into her desk and pulling out a nail file, taking the time to make her nails look better as she spoke with us.

"Yeah, I can. Good ole Yang-a-rang was one of the best of us. Was good in a fight, for a drink, and one of the best escapists." she said. I gave her an odd look, "Sorry, what?" I asked. She giggled, sitting back down and tossing the nail file behind her, it landing perfectly in the nearby wastebin. "Sorry, but you don't know what I'm part of do you?" she asked. I nodded, Ren doing the same, she'd kind of _told_ us. "You're the owner of this fight clu-" "Wrong." she interrupted. Ren and I glanced at each other, then back at her. "Then what _are_ you a part of Coco?" I asked. She frowned, leaning in close and placing her hands on the table, looming over us as I got the sense something very serious was about to happen. "What I'm about to tell you is strictly confidential. What I say, _can not_ leave this room. Understand?" she asked. We both nodded, both of us used to keeping secrets by now.

"We are known as many things. By many names, and by many people. Some see us as saviors, others, as villains. We are the shadows that cling to the walls at night, we are the walkers that protect the remorseful, and punish the guilty. Our mission is simple. Those that disobey the Rose family, the White Fang, the Schnee family. We get them out, we keep them safe, and ultimately, our goal is the elimination of all of them. We are the seekers of justice that do not seek any reward but a crime-free Vale. Surely you've noticed the condition of the city detectives?" she asked. We both nodded, no need for words there. We'd seen the hell the world was becoming, it wasn't that hard to tell. Though, I did have to ask one question, "Still… why did Winter call you Crosshares?" I asked. She smiled, "That's but a codename. All members have them. We are known by one title among our members, the most closely guarded secret we have." she said, then she stood, smiling down at us.

"We are known as Beacon."


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter five: Cloak and Danger

 **A/n- Eh, figured the pun title would work here.**

"What I'm getting at is that you smuggle people out of Vale and into the other kingdoms. Is that about right?" Ren asked, leaning towards Coco. She simply nodded, standing up and grabbing for a filing cabinet behind her. She quickly opened one of the drawers, pulling out a folder before laying it on the table. On the side of the folder was a name, "Yang Xiao Long. The 17 year old brawler. Codename: Sunny Dragon. Last confirmed location was my office. She asked for specifics about our only current White Fang operative. Codename: Chameleon. Don't know much else about them, other than they're a faunus that hates the White Fang." she said, opening the file. Inside was a photo of Yang on the top right-hand corner, the rest of the page filled with information. Her birthdate, her relationships (there were so many it said more were listed on the back of the page), and her credentials and operations. It said she'd worked in operations 'Red Glare', 'Tea Party', and 'Cat outta the bag'.

"You say they're the only _current_ operative in the White Fang, are there others, or… _were_ , there others?" I asked. She nodded, a frown flickering across her face for a moment before she reached beneath the table, grabbing a bottle. " _Drinking the pain away huh?_ " I thought as she produced a shotglass from seemingly nowhere, pouring herself one before knocking it back. "Yeah. One got away, you've met her already, Blake. The other… God…" she said, and I could've _sworn_ I saw a tear drop down the side of her face. "The other didn't?" Ren finished for her. Coco nodded, wiping at her eyes as she poured another shot, tossing it back before she coughed. "Nah… she was my job, I was getting her out and… bastards… Bastards! ALL OF 'EM!" she yelled, throwing the shotglass at the wall, it shattering, right against a picture frame. In that picture frame, I noticed something… odd. There were three people, one the man from earlier, one a _ridiculously_ tall man, and Coco. They were all crying, right in front of a gravestone. What chilled me was what it read…

Here lies Velvet Scarlatina.

"Jaune…" Ren whispered, his eyes widening as he saw the photo. I nodded, "Don't say anything… yet." I whispered back. We turned back to Coco as she took off her sunglasses, wiping away at them with a nearby cloth before grabbing another shot glass from beneath the desk. "Sorry… she was a friend. I… I failed her. Nevermind that," she said, tossing back another shot. She was about to pour herself another when I grabbed her hand, "I think you've had enough Coco." I said, frowning at her, my eyes concerned. Even if she was of age, which I doubted she was, three shots was pushing the limit to getting her drunk. The _last_ thing we needed was the only person who could help us to end up completely wasted on the floor. She nodded, corking the bottle and putting it away, setting her shot glass back down. "Right… yeah. Anyway uh… what was I saying?" she asked.

"Yang?" I said. She nodded, shaking her head, likely trying to rid herself of the booze-induced fuzziness she was no doubt experiencing. "Right right. Yeah, anyway, Yang went out looking for Chameleon after she escorted Blake to our nearest safe house, the club downtown." she said. Me and Ren looked at one another, then we turned back to Coco. "Yeeeeah… I don't know if that 'safehouse' is safe anymore." I said. She gave me an odd look, opening her mouth to speak. Though, as if reading her mind (which I was sometimes convinced he could actually do), Ren spoke. "The club was attacked by White Fang members looking for Blake Belladonna. They knew she was there." he said. Coco sighed, leaning down and looking at Yang's file, swaying slightly. Whether that was from the alcohol, exhaustion, fear, or a little bit of everything, I couldn't tell. "Dammit. We're running out of hiding places. We'll be down to just running them straight to Mistral at this rate." she said.

"Sorry but… we're still trying to fing Yang. Can you tell us anymore that could help us in the case?" I asked. Coco shook her head, falling back down into her chair. She pulled off her sunglasses, rubbing the bridge between her nose as, for the first time, I noticed just how _tired_ she looked. There weren't bags under her eyes or anything like that but, her eyes just seemed… haggard was an understatement. She looked like she could sleep for a century if she could. She looked so… vulnerable. "You can keep the file but… best thing I can tell you is talk with Blake again, ask what she knew about Chameleon." she said. I nodded, standing up as Ren did the same. We both turned to walk away, "Jaune. I normally don't ask this but… you wanna make some easy money?" she asked, giving me a small smile. I turned around, raising an eyebrow. "If it involves anything remotely sexual… no." I said.

She laughed, "No, nothing like _that_. Anyone in _my_ bed is there by choice. I mean… would you mind being a caretaker?" she asked. Ren and I looked at each other, the same question running through our minds. We both turned and, in unison, asked, "What do you mean by _caretaker_?" She smiled, likely at the way we both talked at the same time. "Beacon has different jobs. Escapists get the runners out. Caretakers keep the runners safe for awhile. Then escorts take the runners from the caretakers so they can be shipped somewhere safe. Then you've got the heavy's and leaders but, that's really all you need to know." she said. Ren spoke before I could, which, in and of itself, was unusual. "How much lien are we talking?" he asked. Coco gave us a small smirk, reaching beneath her desk and grabbing out a few cards. She tossed them down, and of course I quickly picked them up. " _Almost 1200 lien?! The hell?!"_

"There's double that for you if you agree. Paid for every runner or heavy you keep in there. That office of yours used to be an apartment building right? Means we can fit more people in there, which means more escapees for us, more money for you, and less crime in Vale altogether." she said. I pocketed the lien next to what Ruby and Pyrrha gave me for the cases, then I looked at Ren. He gave me that 'do it moron' look again. I mean, we _could_ always use the extra money. "Alright Coco… you've got a deal." I said. She clapped her hands, walking over before clapping one on my shoulder. "I figured we might. Only one more thing. You two need codenames." she said, thumping two fingers on my chest. She had a surprising strength behind it, as Ren actually had to hold his hands out to keep me from falling on top of him.

"What are they?" I asked. Coco had her mouth open, about to speak, but then shut it again, looking down, her brow scrunched up in thought. "Let's see… Ah!" she said, nearly slamming her fist into her outstretched palm, her eyes likely lighting up behind her sunglasses. She pointed at Ren, "You'll be Ninja and you'll," she pointed at me, "be Jaundice." she said. I blinked twice, having to hold back a sigh, "So he gets to be named after a warrior and I… get to be named after a skin disease." I said. Coco shrugged, walking over to us and opening the door. "Hey! You try coming up with nicknames on the spot for people you barely know! It ain't easy!" she said, lightly pushing us out. "Now, run on back to Blake. I've got work to do." she said, shutting the door behind us. Though, I immediately heard the sound of glass breaking coming from inside. "WHY DO I NOT JUST BUY PLASTIC ONE'S!?" I heard Coco yell.

Ren and I both walked away, heading towards the man at the door, said door now being closed. He was just staring towards the same general area, off in front of him. Me and Ren walked right in front of him, and he didn't move a muscle until I pulled the door, finding it wouldn't budge. He suddenly shot up, sliding open the top slide and looking out. "The hell you doin' here? We're closed!" the man said. Ren tapped on his shoulder, causing him to jerk around. "Oh, it's you two. Hehe, didn't hear you comin'. Go on out." he said, pushing open the door. " _Oh… right._ " I thought. How did I forget something that obvious? Ren and I walked through, Ren looking back at the man for a moment before the door shut. "He was… strange." Ren said. I shrugged, reaching into my pocket and pulling out my last cigar. I quickly lit it, inhaling the muddling smoke before letting out a puff. "Well, you'd be acting like that too if you were blind." I said.

Ren sighed, "Can you explain how you figured that out Jaune?" Ren asked. Though his voice was annoyed, he couldn't, or just didn't, hide the shadow of a smile dancing across his face. "He didn't react to the sight of us, only the sound of the door's pressure. Even then he thought it was someone trying to get in, not out. We didn't make much noise walking towards him, so he didn't know we were there until you tapped him on the shoulder." I said. Ren shrugged, smiling slightly as we walked towards the doorway that lead outside. I stopped, grabbing Ren's shoulder, "What's wrong?" he asked, looking back at me. I let go of Ren, pulling out my gun and aiming it at the door. "Keep it down. We left the door open remember? Who the hell closed it?" I whispered. He nodded, drawing stormflower and standing right beside the door. I nodded to him, motioning for him to open the door with my left hand.

When he opened it… I couldn't have been more surprised. There, standing in the rays of the evening sun, (hard to believe it'd been only one day) was Pyrrha. She was dressed as she always was, in her police uniform and all that. Though, this time, her eyes were wide, her hands up. "Woah! Woah! Don't shoot Jaune!" she said, keeping her hands where I could see them as me and Ren both walked forwards. When we got outside, I noticed her cruiser parked next to Ren's car, a few noticeable bullet holes in the side I hadn't seen before. "What're you doing here Pyrrha?" I asked, setting my gun back in my jacket. She nodded, giving me a small smile. "I could ask the same of you, except for the Pyrrha bit, what're _you_ doing here?" she asked.

"I asked you first." "I asked you second." I sighed, looking towards Ren, my eyes hoping he would give me some kind of advice. When he looked back towards me, he just nodded, telling me to answer her. I turned back to Pyrrha, "We got a lead on Yang and traced it here. Now we're heading back to the office." I said. She nodded, combing her fingers back through her ponytail, assumingly trying to fix it. "Well, I suppose I owe you an explanation. I was looking for you." she said. I cocked an eyebrow, Ren doing the same. "Wait, didn't you _just_ ask what we were doing here?" I asked. She looked away, her face tinged light red as she lightly scratched her left cheek with her index finger. "Eheh, umm… well, I knew you _were_ here, I just… didn't know _why_ and I was… well, curious." she said. I nodded, looking back towards Ren. He sighed, "Unless you've got something important to ask or tell us, get out of the way. We've got some business to take care of." he said, looking back at me. I had a feeling the 'business' he was talking about wasn't Yang or Blake. That 'business' would more than likely be why my secretary was supposedly dead.

Pyrrha nodded, stepping out of the way, "Listen. I want you to know that there's been an assault, an attempted murder. It's the Torchwick case." she said, her eyes suddenly serious. Me and Ren walked out, looking around for any possible danger, as was our normal procedure. "Who?" we both asked. Pyrrha gestured behind her, at her police cruiser. "Thankfully I was nearby and chased off the killer. She's Torchwick's other daughter. I've tried talking with her but, she appears to be in shock. She hasn't spoken a word." she said. I walked towards her police cruiser, my eyes widening a bit when I saw the girl in the backseat. She was dressed in what looked like a long, pink sweater, likely homemade. Long, pale legs were held up beneath her, her arms wrapped around them as she slowly rocked back and forth. From what I could tell she sweater, and maybe some underwear, were the only clothes she was wearing.

What got me the most was her hair. Long and three different colors, white, pink, and brown. It was shaggy in places, and you could see the drying tear stains on her face, along with the subtle way her body was shaking. "I drove her straight here after I scared off the killer. Guess they caught her while she was going to bed." Pyrrha said, opening her door. The girl jerked up, her eyes wide and pale white, scanning around. The moment they rested on Pyrrha they relaxed a little, but she kept shaking and rocking. "Follow me, I've got a place she can lay low for awhile." I said. Ren looked at me, raising an eyebrow. "Uhh, Jaune? Are you sure we should be housing so many targets?" he whispered, low enough Pyrrha couldn't have heard it. I nodded without hesitation, "We've got plenty of room, don't worry." I turned back to Pyrrha, "It's probably for the best if she comes with us, just incase the killer's tracking your car." I said.

Pyrrha opened her mouth to protest, but then shut it a moment later, sighing. "You have a point…" she said, opening the back door. The girl backed away when she saw us. Pyrrha held out her hands, "It's okay Neo, these men are here to help. They'll keep you safe until we can find the man that attacked you." she said. The newly named Neo looked up, still shaking, her eyes gazing over me and Ren. I smiled at her, giving a little wave, "Hi Neo." I said. This seemed to calm her down a little, as she stopped shivering, only rocking back and forth at this point. Neo, with encourage from Pyrrha, slowly got out of the car, standing up straight in front of us. I couldn't really tell how old she was, since she was _tiny_. I mean, she was like five feet tall, at _most_.

"Don't worry Neo. We'll keep you safe." I said, smiling as I crouched down, getting to her height. Neo gulped, nodding as she looked at Pyrrha. Said officer just smiled, motioning towards us. She slowly walked towards us as I held out my hand, which she took. I guided her to Ren's car like she was a child, helping her get in the backseat. I shut the door quickly, removing my cigar and letting out a slow puff into the air. "One helluva day…" I muttered, looking towards the sunset. It was hard to believe that, in just one day, I'd taken in two people, been involved with two of the biggest crime families in Vale, and discovered a secret organization. Not to mention I became _part_ of said organization. I got in the car, Ren getting in a moment later. I looked back at Neo, giving her a small smile, "Hey, buckle up okay? We'll be somewhere safe soon." I said. She nodded, putting her legs down and buckling up. Though I hadn't really been looking, I couldn't help but notice she was wearing pale pink panties.

I turned back around, not wanting to feel like a pervert by staring, and just let out a puff of smoke through the window. Ren put up the top, mostly since we didn't want Neo to be seen. "You know where to go." I said. Ren just nodded, burning rubber out of the lot and through the emptying streets. I just looked out at the world, occasionally blowing a puff of smoke out the window. I absently looked through the mirror, but my mind was quickly snapped out of it's daze as I saw what was in the mirror. It was a car, long and black, the lights were off, despite the evening light. What got me were the people inside. The driver was big, tough looking, and with long, black sideburns down the sides of his face. The passenger, on the other hand, was a tanned woman with pale green hair, her eyes bright red and, seemingly, staring right at me. I wouldn't have given much mind to the odd pair… if it weren't for the tattoo on the man's shoulder.

"We got White Fang!" I said, quickly grabbing my gun, pulling it out and setting it on my lap. Ren looked in the mirror, his eyes widening as he pressed down a bit more on the accelerator. "Where now?" Ren asked. We both knew that we couldn't risk leading them to Blake. I frowned, "Take four right turns, see if they're following us. If they're still following after the last one, gun it down the road." I said. Ren nodded, turning on his turn signal and quickly taking it. They followed. Took another one, they followed. We took the third, they followed. "Get ready…" I said. Ren took the next turn somewhat slow, but the moment he straightened, I had to hold on from the sudden whiplash. I looked back, seeing the woman slapping the man on the back of the head, likely shouting at him to go faster. " _They don't know where the office is._ " I thought. That was at least _one_ comforting thought.

I looked forwards, watching Ren darting past red lights, green ones, and even two stunned police officers. I heard the sirens as they started driving after us. "Ren! The trainyard!" I yelled over the wind and the sirens. He nodded, smirking. Ren knew that place like the back of his hand, if we could lose these guys anywhere, it was there. Ren took a sharp left, cutting through cross traffic with ease and, for a few seconds, driving down the wrong side of the road. "Truck!" I yelled, seeing the large dump-truck barreling towards us. Ren nodded, breaking through a chain-link fence. He drove through what I guessed was a parking lot, between the rows of cars. I looked back, my eyes widening as I saw the car from before gaining on us.

We burst out of the parking lot and back onto the main road, the trainyard was right ahead of us. Ren drove right past the train tracks, just before the bars went up. I looked back, seeing the other car busting right through the bars a moment later. "Oh come on!" I yelled in frustration, aiming my gun out the window. I took a breath, shutting my left eye as I aimed for the driver. I fired a few rounds, one hitting him in the shoulder, the rest just shattering the windshield. I shut the window a moment later, holstering my gun. I looked back, seeing Neo ducking down, covering her ears. "REN!" I yelled, pointing straight ahead. He turned, his eyes widening as he slammed on the brakes. I saw a train heading right past us, just a few inches away. I got out of the car, ignoring Ren's warnings and questions as I saw the car barreling towards us. I looked down, cracking open my revolvers cylinder. " _Two bullets, better make 'em count_." I thought as I propped my arms on the roof of the car. I squeezed one eye shut, taking a breath.

BANG! BANG!

I opened both eyes as I saw the car careening into the side of a stationary train car, the occupants likely either dead or injured. I looked down at my gun, the two bullets still there. " _Who the hell fired?_ " I thought as I looked around. I thought I saw a brief flash of red on top of the nearby warehouse, but just as quickly as it came, it was gone. "JAUNE! GET IN!" Ren yelled, one of the few times I heard him sound angry. Then again, he was just probably just nervous about getting shot at… for the second time today. I looked at the warehouse for a moment before I got back in the car, still looking back as Ren headed for the office.

I giggled as I reached down, biting into a cookie I'd brought. " _Naughty naughty Emerald~_ " I thought, swinging my rifle over my shoulder. The girl was becoming a pain in the ass _very_ quickly. I couldn't help but think, what would she look like if her hair was bright red? Oh, it would suit her just fine. "A few bullets from my baby and you'll be right as rain~" I said, trailing my hands down crescent rose, my favorite rifle. I walked up to the side of the roof, smirking as I saw Ren's car driving away. "Find Yang already, I _hate_ waiting." I said, never losing my smile as I walked back towards the stairs, skipping over the dead guards, both with holes in the sides of their heads. " _Just wait Yang…_ " I thought as I happily skipped down the stairs.

"I'll put a bullet in that traitorous little head of yours soon enough~"


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter six: The twins

I let out a sigh of relief when I saw the office a few feet ahead of us. Ren drove in without any trouble, then we both got out. I looked around, making sure there were no White Fang trucks heading towards us, about to rip us to shreds with their guns, and then turned to Ren. "I think we're in the clear, we better move fast." I said. He nodded, opening the backdoor as I opened the one on my side too. Neo was sitting in the middle, still huddled up in the center seat, her eyes focused on the floor. "Hey, Neo. It's okay, we're somewhere safe." I said in my most gentle voice, giving her a small smile as I held out a hand. She looked up at me, her eyes contemplative for a few seconds before she took my hand, her soft hand easily being swallowed up by my own.

I got her out as Ren shut the doors on his car, quickly locking it. The three of us walked towards the door, Ren opening it for me as I guided Neo through. When I got in, I noticed a few things different. Ton-Ton was nowhere to be seen, though that was normal, and Blake was downstairs. She was talking with Velvet, leaning in and speaking in frantic, hushed whispers. "Blake." I said, disrupting her. She turned around, her ears suddenly stiffening, as she'd opted to remove her bow. She changed clothes it seemed, into a simple black top with a long, purple skirt, black polka dots dotting it. Over said black top though, she was wearing what looked like a patched up denim jacket, the patches ranging from yellow, to red, to white.

She turned around, smiling at me as she tried, emphasis on _tried_ , to act like nothing was happening. "Hello Jaune, Ren, what's going on?" she asked. I looked towards Ren, then Neo, raising my eyebrows at him in an unspoken question. He nodded, grabbing Neo's hand, "Come with me, I'll take you to your room." he said quietly, guiding her towards the stairs. Once they were gone I walked over to the two faunus, both of them staring after Ren. "Umm… who was the little girl?" Blake asked, looking back at me. I shrugged, glaring at her out of the corner of my eye as I kept my head facing forwards. "You know, I probably should've figured you'd known more about Yang than you were letting on." I said, facing her, leaning my head down so I was slightly looking up at her.

She looked towards Velvet, chuckling, "What're you talking about Jaune?" she asked. I smiled, leaning my head on my hand, my elbow resting on the desk as I sat down. "How 'bout you tell me Blake, Beacon operatives tend to keep tabs on each other, right?" I said. Her eyes widened as she jumped back, reaching for her hip, this time actually grabbing a gun. "How did you learn that name!?" she asked. I held up both hands, keeping that same smile on hand. "Cross-hares told me. Which brings me to my _next_ question." I said, swivelling to face Velvet. She gulped, leaning back a bit in her chair. "Y-Yes?" she asked, giving me a nervous smile. I leaned in, enough that I was only a few inches from her face, "Why is there a gravestone with your name on it?" I asked.

She flinched back, then she looked down, slowly shaking her head. "I couldn't do it… I just couldn't…" she said, her lower lip trembling a bit as I felt her ears brush past my face. I stood, walking around behind the desk before I placed a hand on her shoulder. "Couldn't do _what_ Velvet?" I asked. She sniffed, looking up at me with teary eyes. Then, she did something I hadn't expected. She stood, wrapping her arms around my neck and burying her face in my shoulder. I could hear her start to cry as I hugged her, patting her back, "It's okay Velvet… whatever it is just… just tell me what happened…" I said. I heard her sniff a few times before she backed up, wiping at her eyes. "I… I was a White Fang informant, just like you Blake, " she said, looking towards said faunus, then she turned back to me, "I couldn't do it, I couldn't deal with the killing and the violence and the, the…" she took a shaky breath, "I couldn't deal with my daughter growing up in that. I wanted to help people but, I couldn't even help _myself_. I mean, look at me! I'm a 19 year old single mother that the world hates because she has rabbit ears!" she said, falling back in her chair as I saw her ears droop.

"I was out of options… so I called Coco. I asked… I _begged_ her to get me out. She tried… god she tried… but it was too much, even for a heavy like her. I was captured again, and she almost died. Adam he… he…" she stopped, tears running down her face at this point as she started hiccuping. I got down on one knee, placing a hand on her shoulder, "You don't have to say more… I understand." I said, frowning at her. She looked up, nodding as she produced a handkerchief from her pocket and wiping away at the tears before she noisily blew her nose on it, tossing it in the trash. I felt a presence behind me, and I was suddenly _very_ afraid. That presence felt angry, very, _very_ , angry. Blake leaned over my shoulder, nearly growling towards Velvet, "That _fucker_ …" she muttered, and I'll never forget that look in her eyes.

It was a look of rage, primal, deep, and true.

I'd never, _ever_ seen someone look so angry. I stood, looking towards Blake, "I… think that's enough for one day. Velvet… you can go home early, be with Ton-Ton. I think… I think we're closing up shop for the day." I said. Velvet looked up, nodding towards me as she stood. "Thanks Jaune." she said, wiping away her tears with her sleeve. I patted her shoulder, giving her a smile, "Hey, don't mention it. Just… take care of yourself, okay?" I said. She nodded, giving me a small smile before she turned around, gathering her things. In the meantime, I grabbed Blake's hand, "We need to talk, _now_." I said, giving her the most serious glare I could muster. She saw the look in my eyes, and just nodded, walking towards my office as I struggled for a second to catch up with her.

I saw Ren stepping out of Neo's room, which was right next to Blake's, a moment later, and he raised an eyebrow at me, "Velvet?" "Long story." I replied, walking into my office and shutting the door. I walked back to my desk, smiling slightly as I felt the familiar chair beneath me. I turned to Blake, my smile dropping as I held my hands like always, steeples, and saw her sit back down, crossing her left leg over her right. She looked at me, Amber eyes meeting Blue ones, "What do you want to know Jaune?" she asked. I sighed, rubbing the bridge of my nose before I placed my hands back the way they were, "Listen, I met with Cross-hares or, well, Coco if you knew her personally, and she said I should be asking you about Yang. I want the truth Blake, that's all." I said.

Blake nodded, looking down at the ground before she took a breath, "I was part of Beacon, it's top informant." she said. I nodded, I knew _that_ already, I just moved my hand in a circle, asking her for more. She complied, "I sent escapees with Yang or other escapists, then they went to the caretakers. Yang… asked me for a favor okay." she said, frowning at me. I nodded, "What was it Blake?" I asked. She took a breath, her eyes conflicted. On one hand, if she told me, she might see Yang again, but if she did, she'd be telling me what her friend had likely not wanted her to tell to anyone. Though, it seemed she made up her mind. "She wanted me to send her to Mistral." she said. I cocked an eyebrow, leaning in closer. "Why?" I asked. Now, I may be good at predicting my opponent's moves, at figuring out what's going to happen. But I never, _ever_ , would've imagined what she said next.

"So her sister couldn't kill her."

The room went dead quiet, the only sound being the slow turning of the fan above my head. "Ruby Xiao Long… _she's_ the reason?" I asked. Blake shook her head, giving me a small smile, "Ruby didn't tell you did she? That she didn't go by Xiao Long. No, her name's Ruby Rose. You might know her better as 'The Bloody Rose'." Blake said. I felt my eyes widen as I leaned back, feeling the implication of what she said dawning on me.

I'd been helping the most dangerous woman in Vale find her next victim.

"Why? Just… why does Ruby want Yang dead?" I asked. Blake shrugged, looking out the window behind me, "I don't know. Ruby's… unstable would be an understatement. I'm pretty sure she's completely crazy." she said. I nodded slowly, reaching into my pocket and grabbing out the money Ruby had given me. " _How much of this was taken off of corpses?_ " I thought, my hand shaking a bit. It was so hard to believe, that adorable, awkward little girl, a serial killer? It just didn't make sense. "So… what now? I can't just drop the case, she'll get suspicious. If I find Yang, she's good as dead. God… I'm fucked aren't I?" I said, leaning back in my chair and looking at the ceiling, patting my coat pocket. "Damn, outta cigars." I muttered, standing up.

"You're a caretaker aren't you Jaune?" Blake asked, her eyes staring daggers at me. I nodded, sighing, "Yeah, as of an hour ago. Codename's Jaundice. Not exactly cool huh?" I said, giving a small smile towards her. She giggled, looking away from me, "Well, my codename's Little Kitty so… yeah, you aren't the only one with a bad codename." she said. I chuckled, giving her an incredulous look, "Really? Little Kitty? _That's_ what they went with?" I asked. Blake shrugged, standing up. "Yep. Either way… I don't know where Yang is, just that she's not in Vale." she said, frowning at me. I cocked an eyebrow at her again, "Then where is she? How do you not know?" I asked. Blake shook her head, looking out the window, "Half the people in Vale… they're hiding away from someone. Same story with Mistral. Beacon works with other groups in the other kingdoms. Yang's got a new face, a new identity, everything. All I knew was… she said she wanted to 'look like mom', thing is, no one even knows what her mom looked like. She was… erased." she said. "Erased? What do you mean? I asked.

"Means Summer wiped my sister from existence."

I pulled Blake behind me as I drew my gun, aiming it at the door. In front of me was a tall man, his eyes bright red and his hair cut in a style that said he didn't care, but it seemed like he cared enough to make it _look_ like he didn't care. He was dressed in a long, black cloak that was red on the inside, stretching down near his ankles and tattered in places. Beneath it he was wearing a dark gray t-shirt, his pants black and bleeding down into black boots, the kind I'd only seen on soldiers in the past. There was an obvious rifle draped over his back, though strangely, I couldn't see a scope on it. Around his neck I noticed a crooked cross necklace, strangely made to be pointing to the left. " _Guy must not like religion_." I thought as the man walked forwards, his footsteps resounding in the silent office. His eyes flicked behind me, "Been a while Blake." he said. Blake looked out from behind me for a few seconds, then she sighed. "You have _got_ to stop doing that Qrow." she said.

I looked back at her, "You know this guy?" I asked. Blake nodded, smiling towards him, "This is Qrow Branwen, Yang's uncle. He's also one of Beacon's best heavies. Well… then again there are only three." she said. Qrow, apparently, chuckled, reaching into his cloak and grabbing what looked like a flask. He uncorked it and downed back a drink before setting it back, smiling towards us. "Yeah. Figured I'd come and see the new caretaker I got assigned to. Hadn't expected you already _had_ two guests." he said, gesturing behind him, no doubt referring to Neo. "How did you get in here?" I asked. Qrow just laughed, walking over to me and leaning against my desk. "Kid, my _job_ is to kill quietly and protect people. What kind of heavy would I be if I couldn't break into a building?" he asked. I opened my mouth to respond, but I thought better of it, relaxing a bit and putting my gun away.

"What do you mean Summer 'erased' your sister?" I asked. Qrow sighed, sitting down in the chair Blake was in a moment ago, the two of us standing next to him. He popped open another flask, taking a drink before he set it on the table. "I thought me and Summer were close. Almost family, all four of us were. Never… never have I been more afraid than when I saw Raven's body. I'll spare you the details but, if it weren't for Summer telling me… god I wouldn't have even known it was her. Summer fell for Taiyang, Raven already gave birth to Yang. Raven has her flaws, don't get me wrong. Hell, she lead a bandit clan in Mistral most of her later life. Still… did she deserve _that_?" he sighed, taking another drink of his flask before corking it, tossing it in the nearby trashcan. "Summer married Tai a few months later, had a kid… that kid turned out to be worse than her mother. Poor Tai… he was just a normal guy. He didn't deserve to get involved in this cloak and dagger shit…" he said, sighing as he looked out the window.

"So Summer killed Raven, married Taiyang, then had Ruby. Now Ruby wants to kill Yang for some odd reason?" I asked. Qrow chuckled, shaking his head. "It's not for some _odd reason_ kid, Yang was a Beacon escapist. When her sister found out, she put a bullet through her stomach. Thankfully though, Yang's a tough kid. She got out, got her appearance changed, and got as far from this place as possible. I can tell you what she's doing now." he said, standing up and cracking his back. "What?" I asked. He smiled, grabbing his rifle out in front of him, in a way that told me he'd been wielding it a good portion of his life. "She's following in her mother's footsteps." he said cryptically. "What do you mean?" Blake asked as he walked away. He looked over his shoulder, smiling at us. "He's the detective, ask him." he said, pointing towards me before he walked away.

I sighed, wiping my hand through my hair, holding my hat in my other hand. "Looks like we've got some travelling to do…" I muttered. Blake looked at me oddly, "Huh?" she said. I gave her a tired smile, "We're heading for Mistral. Yang's following her mother's footsteps, meaning she's in Mistral, leading a bandit clan. If Qrow's meaning is taken both ways, it means Yang's also changed her appearance to _look_ like her mother. We just have to figure out what Yang's mother looked like…" I muttered. Blake reached into my trenchcoat pocket, grabbing out a photo. "I'm pretty sure this is it." she said, holding out the photo. I took it, noticing a headshot of a woman. She had bare shoulders, long, black hair falling down her back. She had bright red eyes and pale white skin, with facial features that looked rather familiar. I walked over to my desk, grabbing out the picture of Yang Ruby had given me. I nodded, "Yep, they're related, facial features are almost an exact match." I said.

"Why did you have that picture?" Blake asked. I shook my head, "I didn't. Guess Qrow put it on me, mayb- He stole my wallet!" I said, looking in my coat pocket where the picture was. Blake shook her head, grabbing my hat, revealing my wallet to be taped to the top. "Oh… slipped my mind for a minute there…" I said, smiling slightly as I sheepishly closed my eyes. Blake looked at me as I put my hat back on. "Why… why?" she asked, her expression incredibly confused. I smiled, "Simple. I'll _know_ if someone takes my hat. Messing around in my coat… that's a little harder." I said. She nodded, shrugging, "Well… that's one way to stop a pickpocket I guess…" she said. I nodded, setting Yang's photo back in the drawer, placing Raven's back where it came from. "Yeah, got tired of having my wallet stolen." I said. Blake raised an eyebrow, "How many times has that happened?" she asked. I shrugged, "Not sure, at least twelve." I said.

She looked towards the door, "Well, either way, I guess we need to head to Mistral now." she said. I looked at her oddly, "Wait, 'we'? You mean you wanna come with me and Ren?" I asked. Of course I was taking Ren with me, we always went on overseas jobs together. She nodded, "Yang won't recognize or trust you two. She knows me, she might listen to me. Though, out of curiousity, when you find her… what're you going to do?" she asked. I shrugged, absently patting my pockets until I remembered I was out of cigars. "Dunno. Try and get some answers I guess. Then I'm getting the hell out of Mistral as soon as possible." I said. Blake looked at me oddly, and asked the one question I hoped she wouldn't. "Why? You have something against Mistral?"

"Let's just say the locals don't look kindly on people that ask too many questions." I said cryptically. I'd rather _not_ reveal my darkest secrets to Blake, or anyone for that matter, just yet. Blake nodded, understanding that it wasn't something I wanted to talk about just yet. "Okay then… when do we leave?" she asked, smiling at me. I smiled right back, walking towards the door, "I'll make the arrangements for so we can leave tomorrow. Need to find someone that can keep Neo safe until then." I said. "Maybe I can help with that." I heard a voice say. I jumped back, gripping at my chest as I tried to breath. "Dammit Ren! Don't _do_ that. You'll give me a heart attack one of these days I swear." I said, getting over my partners reverse disappearing act. I stood back up, smoothing out my coat before I met Ren's eyes. "How do you mean?" I asked.

He smiled, "Nora." was all he said. I sighed, "Well, not like we have much choice in the matter…" I muttered, running a hand down my face. I had to admit, it _was_ a solid idea. Nora could protect almost anyone, and she'd be the _last_ person anyone would suspect to work with Beacon… of course, then there was her craziness to factor in. Nora Valkyrie was borderline insane, and would just as soon break your legs and feed you to her sloths than look at you. Yes, she kept killer, pet, sloths. Well… really they were just psychopaths _dressed_ as sloths but hey, I wasn't about to correct her. I nodded at Ren, walking past him to get Neo. I rapped on the door, "Neo. We need to go." I said gently, thinking she might've still been in shock. She opened the door, nodding as she walked out. "Umm, are we gonna give her some pants or no?" Blake asked, referring to the fact that Neo's only current clothes were her underwear and her sweatshirt.

I nodded, rubbing my chin slightly, "Oh yeah, that could be a problem… ah!" I said, dashing towards the staircase. I walked up a floor higher than we were and dashed down the hall, pulling out my keys and opening one of the apartments. Mine. "Wait, you _live_ here?" Blake asked. I nodded, "Yeah, I bought out a whole apartment building, did you think I was going to buy a house for myself too?" I asked, smirking slightly as I opened the door. Inside was what I expected, a bookshelf, mostly filled with comic books, on one side, and a large dresser on the other. I opened the bottom drawer of said dresser, grabbing out a small pair of sweatpants that were, obviously, too small for me. Though, they might just fit Neo. "Why do you even _have_ those?" she asked. I smiled towards her as I tucked the pants under my arm. "When I first came to Vale three years ago I accidently packed a pair of my little sisters sweatpants, never got around to getting rid of them… seems good I didn't." I said.

I walked past Blake, locking my apartment of course, and heading down the stairs, Blake right behind me the entire time, silently watching. When I got downstairs I saw Neo standing in the hall, her head tilted slightly as, oddly enough, both her eyes turned white. I decided against bringing it up and instead just handed her the pants, "These should work for now, I'll see if I can't find anything else later." I said. She smiled at me and nodded, quickly pulling the pants on. After a moment she walked over to me, wrapping her arms around my chest. I chuckled, rubbing her head with one hand, "Don't mention it Neo. Come on, we better use the back entrance though. Ren!" I said. He appeared around the corner, appropriate his codename was ninja, and nodded. "Yes?" he asked. I looked towards the front lot, "Pull your car around the back, lock the front door and hang the closed sign behind you. We're closing up for the day." I said.

He nodded, walking away as I took a breath, letting it go a moment later as I turned around, heading for the staircase and, by extension, the back entrance. "What's the deal with Nora anyway?" Blake asked, falling in step beside me as Neo walked on the other side, lightly holding onto my arm. "She's Ren's girlfriend, and the leader of a streetgang. You heard of the 'Sugar Sloths'?" I asked. She giggled, but nodded, "Yeah, fierce gang but _man_ that name's awful." she said. I chuckled, nodding along with her, even Neo letting out a few quiet giggles. "Well, the woman that named the gang was one Nora Valkyrie, the girl Ren's been dating for… I don't know, a year now?" I said. I lost track of when the two went from being friends to lovers. It was rather… hard to say. Of course, Nora feeding Ren's addiction wasn't exactly helpful. Thank god we got _that_ handled.

The three of us walked downstairs into the back alley behind the office a few minutes later, waiting for Ren. "Say, is Ren… you know, a part of that gang?" she asked. I shook my head, seeing said man driving down the road towards us. "Not anymore. After I busted him a few years back for a crime he left the gang to be my partner. He and Nora… didn't get along so well after that. They started dating more recently and, well, I haven't seen Nora in a few months anyway. Let's just say she _really_ doesn't like me." I said, smiling slightly. Turning her boyfriend off of the stuff she basically _lived_ off of wasn't really helping my relationship with Nora. Granted, if it kept Ren clean and alive, I was willing to be hated by her. Ren pulled up next to us as I opened the back door, "Ladies first." I said, gesturing the two women inside. Blake smiled at me before she rolled her eyes, " _Such_ a gentleman." she said, getting in the car.

I shut the door behind her and got in, nodding to Ren as I buckled up. He got the message, backing out of the alley and driving towards the southern side of Vale. "Last I heard Nora and her crew were hold up in the redlight district, that about right Ren?" I asked, looking towards my stoic partner. He nodded, keeping his eyes on the road. "Yeah. The Rose family finally caught up with Nora and forced her back into a corner as it were. They can't touch her on her own turf, they're not that dumb… Nora's planning something, something _big_." Ren said. I looked at him oddly, this was the first I was hearing about some big scheme cooked up by his girlfriend. "What is it?" Blake asked, leaning in closer, her hand on my shoulder. Ren sighed, "Not sure yet, all I know is it involves the Rose family, and the Schnee's. If Nora gets away with this, those families will be hurting for more than just money." he said.

We rode the rest of the way in silence, Blake and me contemplating what Ren had said while Neo… well she just kinda stared out the window. Ten minutes later we were in Vale's infamous redlight district. Drugs, prostitutes, and gambling were almost all to be found here. Nora only dealt with the first one. " _I mean sure, Nora's flirty and a risk taker, but she's no prostitute or gambler._ " I absently thought as Ren pulled into a parking spot, right in front of the rexford hotel. It was an old building, but it wasn't our destination, not even close. I got out, opening the door for Neo and Blake again. The moment Neo got out, she quickly gripped onto my hand, leaning closer to me. " _Guess she can sense the bad aura this place gives off._ " I thought. For a kid, this wasn't a good place to be. Find a kid here, they're selling themselves or getting pricked by needles in brothels.

We walked down an alley, following Ren, between two buildings. He stopped right at the edge, in front of a large gate. "Hey!" a man said, pointing what looked like a tommy gun at us. Then, he saw Ren. He chuckled, coming down from his perch on top of the gate an opening it. "Come on in Ren, Nora's been wantin' to see ya for a while now." he said, smirking at Ren, revealing yellowed teeth. He was a smoker, like me, just _alot_ older. Ren smiled at the man, walking right past him as me, Neo, and Blake did the same. We walked to the center of a large circle, made by makeshift gates blocking off alleyways, the only way in being the one we just came through… unless you planned on jumping down from the roof. "There you are~" I heard a familiar voice say. Ten feet away from us, two bodyguards at her sides, was Nora Valkyrie.

Her orange hair practically shined in the streetlamps light, her energetic eyes gazing at Ren hungrily. Yeah, I could tell where _that_ would go later. Nora was dressed in what looked to be a tuxedo, a messy one at that, stained in places and unbuttoned down the front, exposing her pink bra and slender stomach. She was wearing similar pants, though they were just ripped in places, pink heels on her feet. She had a few scares on her face, her hands both wrapped up in bandages from her many brawls, and, most notably, she had a .357 magnum pointed right at us. She held it loosely, but I didn't doubt she could kill all of us before we could draw our guns without even blinking. Nora wasn't a serial killer, a psychopath, crazy, or insane. Nora… was Nora. I didn't think there was a word in our language which could describe the woman in front of me.

"Hello Nora." Ren said, smiling slightly at her, his eyes trailing down her outfit. I swore that girl had _no_ shame, considering that's how she dressed everyday. She walked over, holstering her revolver and placing a hand on Ren's shoulder, pulling him closer to her. "Been too damn long, I haven't had a proper sleep in _ages_." she said, trailing a hand down his chest. Ren grabbed it, gesturing behind him. "Nora, I need a favor, _then_ we can get to that." he said, smirking towards his shorter girlfriend. She nodded, glaring at me. "Jaune." she said, her voice betraying her disgust at me. I nodded, "Nora." I said simply. I didn't like her, she didn't like me, simple as that. Ren lightly twisted Nora's head so she was looking back at him. "Neo needs a place to stay, me and Jaune are taking a trip to Mistral on a case. Can you help us?" he asked. Nora looked at Neo, then at Blake, "Which one's Neo?" she asked. Neo stepped out from behind me, holding up a little hand.

Nora's face lit up, her dashing over to Neo and, quite impressively, picking her up and spinning her around. "Oh why didn't you _tell_ me I'd be taking in this adorable widdle ice cream!~" she said, rubbing against Neo as I saw her two bodyguards looking at each other, both clearly confused. Me and Blake were the same way, just staring at Nora and Neo. Neo was just as shocked, still trying to understand what the heck was going on. "So… that mean you'll be fine watching her for a few days?" I asked. Nora looked over at me, the biggest smile I'd even seen on her face there, "Oh of _course_! I'll watch this little cutie as long as you need me too! Isn't that right?" she said, lightly tickling Neo's stomach. Neo seemed to be warming up to Nora, since she was smiling and starting to laugh… course that could just be a result of the tickling. I looked over at Blake, she looked at me, and I could tell at a glance we were thinking the same thing.

" _What the heck just happened?_ "


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter seven: Mile High Barf Club

 **A/n- expect a faunus anatomy headcannon and a motionsick Jaune in this chapter.**

I took a breath as I stepped onto the airplane. I _hated_ flying. After we'd dropped Neo off with Nora, the three of us had drove to the airport, bought tickets to Mistral, and I'd made a brief phone call to Velvet, telling her to close up shop for a few days. Now we were about to head to Mistral. I couldn't help it as I remembered myself getting on an airplane like this one in Mistral, three years ago, leaving my home for Vale. " _This time though, I'm prepared._ " I thought. Of course none of us could pack our weapons on our person, but in our luggage… well, a few favors Ren called in and we'd have all the weapons we'd need right at our feet… or above our heads at least. "Nervous flyer?" Blake asked, smiling over at me as we sat down. I was on the outside, Blake in the middle, and Ren at the window seat. Unlike me, he was almost as comfortable in the air as he was on the ground.

I nodded, gulping as I looked at the ground, buckling up. "You could say that." I said, looking up and around at the passengers. There was a tall man sitting in front of me, a woman with a baby to my left, a few faunus sitting together on the far side, and many, many other people. No one _looked_ like a threat or out of the ordinary, so I didn't think much of it, just looking back down and trying to keep from spilling my guts as I felt the plane start to move forward. The second we were in the air I felt my stomach doing flips in my stomach, the urge to throw-up accompanying it. I felt a soft hand reach under my shirt, tracing light circles on my back. I looked over, half expecting to see my little sister or Velvet, but instead I saw Blake. I flashed her a small smile before I looked back in front of me, trying to forget where I was. "Thanks." I muttered. Luckily I hadn't eaten anything yet, so it would _hopefully_ just be dry-heaving the whole way.

I heard the familiar sound of the flight attendant speaking, saying that it was safe to walk around the cabin. I ignored it as I kept looking straight ahead at my seat. It was going to be a _long_ flight. "Are you alright sir?" I heard a voice say to my right. I looked over, about to say I was fine, when I froze. The woman standing there, that hair and those eyes, I'd know them anywhere. "Coco?" Blake asked, speaking quietly. She winked towards us, placing a finger to her lips. "Shh…" she said, walking away. The next person she stopped by was a tall man in a trenchcoat and sunglasses. It wasn't hard to figure out what she was saying. "This is a Beacon transport mission." Blake whispered, leaning close to me. I nodded, looking over at her. "I figured. Who're they transporting?" I whispered. It was better that, in case anyone was listening in, that our voices were drowned out by the plane's background noise.

Blake lightly flicked her finger up, in a manner that would be basically unnoticeable if you weren't looking for it, pointing towards the group of faunus I'd noticed. "No clue, but I know who's looking for them." she said, pointing at them. I saw it too, the indentations on their faces, the White Fang mask's outline present. Though, when I looked down, I noticed what she was _actually_ pointing at. Beneath one of their seats was their luggage, and sticking out of one of them was the barrel of a gun, a tommy gun if I had to guess. That _was_ one of the White Fang's favorite tools. I nodded, "White Fang, no question about it. How many agents on board?" I asked in a hurried whisper. If there was even a chance someone was listening in, I didn't want to let on how much we knew.

She shook her head slightly, leaning her head on my shoulder as she kept rubbing circles on my back. Playing the role of the comforting lover would trick anyone looking at us. "No telling, three at least. Coco and the man in the trench coat. One escort, one heavy, now where's the tourist?" she asked. I looked back at her with a questioning gaze. "Tourist?" I asked. She shook her head, lightly playing with a strand of her hair, keeping up the act. "Tourists are the transports. The escorts get the runners to the transport, the heavy guards them, and the tourist get's them to their destination. Could even be the pilot." she whispered. Then, she whispered something I wouldn't have expected, "Wrap your arm around me, keep up the act." she said. I complied, pulling Blake closer to me as I tried to keep from vomiting, but more focused on the group in front of me now.

It was ten minutes later when one of the group got up, walking towards the bathroom. Not five minutes later, another one walked up, walking right past the one coming back. Blake probably missed it, hell probably so did everyone else, but I saw. One of them was carrying something in his left hand, and when he walked past the one going to the bathroom, he suddenly didn't anymore. "They passed along something." I muttered. Blake just nodded, and caused me to blush a bit when she moved closer to me, something I wasn't sure was possible at this stage. "Did you see what?" she whispered. I shook my head, flicking my finger up to point at the one that had just come back. "No. That one had it, then he handed it off. Something's up." I whispered. Blake leaned down, moving her left hand beneath the seat, moving her carry on in front of her, ready to grab the gun at a moment's notice. "Just in case." she whispered. I nodded as she went back to hugging me, playing up the act. "Just in case." I repeated, looking down at the faunus across from us as subtly as I could.

Another five minutes later, when the second one came back, the third one walked over. The same thing repeated itself, the item they had swapped hands. Coco seemed to be catching on at this point, as she looked over at me. She reached into her shirt, flashing the grip of a pistol at me. A message from a heavy to a caretaker. I may not have been well versed in the secret language Beacon operatives seemed to use, but I knew well enough what that meant.

" _Get ready for a fight._ "

When the third one got out of the bathroom, he walked over to the pilot's cabin. My eyes widened as I saw him pull a gun, aiming it at the pilot. " _So that's what they were doing, moving the parts to make a gun between each other._ " I thought. The man spoke softly, and in the panicked words of some of the other passengers, I couldn't quite make it out. "He just said 'Where's Tukson?'... that must be the runner." Blake said. I nodded, thankful for her stronger hearing. Coco didn't miss a beat, pulling the gun from her shirt and aiming it at the hijacker. "Don't move, you don't die." she said, pulling on a pair of sunglasses. As I expected, the other faunus stood, pulling out the tommy gun from beneath his seat, aiming it at Coco. "Put the gun down whore." he said, his voice deep and gravelly. Coco growled back at him, but slowly held her hands up, not moving. The other turned, quickly hitting her in the head with the butt of his gun.

She crumbled to the floor, likely unconscious, as the third one stood, walking to the front and grabbing at the intercomm. "Alright human pigs! Nobody moves, nobody gets hurt! Got it!?" he asked. His voice was rough and scratchy, like sandpaper across your face. I heard a baby start crying as Ren and I both reached beneath us, grabbing out our bags. I felt my fingers brush against Crocea Mors as I waited, feeling the familiar grip settling into my hands. I looked up, Blake still playing the concerned girlfriend act, as two of them walked down the aisles, the third standing near the exit door and keeping his gun pointed at the pilot and the unconscious Coco. One of them walked towards us as I pulled Crocea Mors back, setting it in my coat as I moved both hands, holding my stomach as if I were about to Vomit… which I was anyway so, not that hard to act. "What's wrong with him?" one of them asked, quickly pulling on a White Fang mask and aiming his gun at my head.

"No! P-Please don't hurt him! He's just motion sick, t-that's all!" Blake said, her eyes betraying a false nervousness that I knew would fool the man. The faunus just lightly tapped my forehead with his gunbarrel. "Hey, look at me. Look at me!" he said. I was about to, but it seemed luck was on my side, as the second he said that I heard someone speak. "I FOUND -BANG!" the sound of a gunshot cut him off as I jumped up, wrapping an arm around the man above me as I placed my gun at his head. I looked around, seeing a large man, long, black sideburns, holding a shotgun and aiming it towards me… well, the man I held in my grip anyway. The other one, the one that seemed to be the leader, swung around, aiming his gun at us. I didn't even blink as I fired my shot.

"GAHH!" he yelled, gripping at his groan. It was the fastest way I knew to incapacitate someone. I pushed the man in front of me back, spinning my gun on my finger before slamming the barrel across his forehead, I swore I saw a few of his teeth fly towards the old woman sitting in front of me. He fell to the ground, unconscious, as I looked towards the burly man with the shotgun. "You must be the runner." I said. The man with the trenchcoat and sunglasses from before stood up, smirking towards me. "And you must be a genius." he said sarcastically. I sighed as I shook my head, I'd know that snarky voice anywhere. "Hey old man." I said, smirking slightly towards him. He sighed, "It's Bad Luck Charm, got it Jaundice?" he asked. I nodded, looking towards Coco and the man still gripping at his groin. Said man, a leopard faunus if I had to guess, just kept letting out nearly incoherent strings of swearwords and curses.

I looked behind him, feeling a bit of anger when I noticed that, at some point, he'd actually started to undress Coco, unbuttoning her shirt while she was unconscious to the point of exposing her chocolate brown bra. I turned to the man and aimed my gun at his forehead. "BASTARD! Gahh… think ya broke one of 'em! Ugh…" he said, finally able to make a coherent sentence. "Considering what you were about to do to her, I think you'd have ended up the same way." Qrow said, chuckling as he, predictably, took a swig of his flask. I leaned down, glaring into the man's eyes. "Human scum!" he said, though Ren quickly silenced him, stepping on his groan. "AHHH!" "Ren! Stop!" I said, looking towards him. He shrugged, stepping back and sitting down in a nearby empty airliner seat. I looked back to the man, "Look, my partner, he's not a nice guy. He's probably not much better than you in hindsight. But hell, he stands for justice, unlike you. Now, I want you to answer all my questions, or I'll have him go to work on you, got it?" I said, smiling slightly.

He quickly nodded, likely not wanting to feel Ren's full weight on his groin again. "Good. Who were you after?" I asked. The man gulped, "Tukson, we were ordered to kill him before he got to Mistral!" he said, panicked. I nodded, Blake walking over next to me and leaning in. "Who ordered you?" Blake asked, her eyes taking on that same interrogative quality I likely had in mine. The faunus gulped, "Adam Taurus. His orders were any traitors to be hunted down and executed." he said. I slowly nodded, storing away the information for later. "Where is he?" Blake asked. The faunus shook his head, looking away. "I don't know, I was given orders by my group leader, he didn't deal with me directly! Please! You gotta believe me! I don't know anything else!" he said, his eyes panicked, as he'd yet to put a mask on. I sighed, shaking my head, "Think we've gotten everything we can out of him." I muttered.

BANG!

"GOD!" I yelled, jumping back. I looked back as I tried to wipe away some of the blood on my trenchcoat. Granted, not much had gotten on it, but still, there were a few spots. Which made no sense since I was like, three feet away. I looked back, seeing Qrow's rifle smoking. "THE HELL WAS THAT?! HE WASN'T A THREAT!" I yelled. Qrow just shrugged, cocking back the bolt on his rifle, ejecting the spent shell. "What? You said you got everything you could out of him, no point in keeping a useless enemy alive." he said, his eyes completely dead, if a little glossed over. Then again, he _had_ just been drinking. "He was still a person! He _clearly_ wasn't dangerous! Why couldn't we have, I don't know, just reported them to the police? Let _them_ deal with it!" I said. I saw a flash of movement out of the corner of my eye, so I turned, seeing Coco smirking towards me, sitting back upright and rubbing her forehead. "Damn… that hurt like a bitch…" she muttered, still smiling. I felt my face flush a bit as I gestured to her shirt. "Uh, you plan on covering up?" I asked, looking away from her.

She giggled, buttoning her shirt back up before she walked over, placing her gun back in said article of clothing. "So innocent… most people would just let me go around like that." she said, sitting down next to me, Blake on the other side. "He _was_ a threat Jaundice. Sorry you had to see it, but this is the way it is. We want to keep up our cover? We _can't_ let anyone know what we look like. Though," she stood, looking towards the passengers. "I think we can trust these guys to keep a secret." she quickly grabbed the man's tommy gun, aiming it at the crowd. "Right guys?" she asked, nearly growling it. "Yes!" "Yeah!" "We won't say a word!" "Please don't kill us!" I heard, everyone saying something similar. In general, they agreed. I looked up at Coco, "So… it doesn't matter if they're innocent? You just… _kill_ them? Even if they surrender?" I asked. Coco nodded, frowning towards me as she rested the butt of the man's gun on the ground, crouching down in front of me.

"Hard times call for hard people. We can't afford to be exposed." she said, speaking a bit quieter than before. Qrow yawned, reaching into his pocket and taking out a small coin. He flipped it, opening his hand before he sighed, and for once, I could see just how… tired, he was. I looked over, and I saw that on one side of the coin, the one it had landed on, there was a picture of a skull. When he moved to put it back in his pocket, I caught a glimpse of the other side, it was a woman, a queen if the crown were anything to go by. "Deciding something?" I asked, looking up at the older heavy. He sighed, "Nah. Could flip this coin a hundred times and it would always be tails. Just an old habit…" he said, looking out the window as we kept flying. I turned to Blake, "Guess it was two heavies then, no tourists." I said, smiling slightly.

"Nah, the Tourist is the pilot." Coco said, casually jerking a thumb over her shoulder, said Pilot waving at us. "Hi! On an unrelated note, does anyone have any clean pants?" he said. I waved back, looking towards Blake, a smug smirk on her face. "You were saying, detective?" Blake asked. Coco looked at Blake, then back at me, then, she chuckled, "You know, I think that's a _much_ better codename for you. What do you like better? Detective or Jaundice?" she asked. "Detective." I answered without even thinking. It wasn't a hard choice, I hadn't really liked the codename 'Jaundice' from the beginning. "Can I get a new codename too?" Blake asked, her eyes hopeful as I saw, just behind her bow, her ears standing up straight. Coco chuckled, shaking her head. "Nah, I think Little Kitty works juuuust fine for you." she said. I saw Blake's ears 'deflate' I guess, her frowning.

I chuckled, petting between her ears almost out of instinct. "Hey, it's not _that_ bad of a nickname." I said, rubbing my hand between her ears. Blake just sighed, rubbing slightly into my hand. I moved my hand off her head, slightly confused, but the moment I did she glared at me, "Why'd you stop?" she asked. I didn't answer, but just continued petting her, her going so far as to rub up against me this time. I looked back, seeing Ren smiling towards me, that same smug look he had when Coco was flirting with me on his face. I glared at him as Coco spoke, drawing my eyes back to her, "Huh, haven't seen her do that since Sunny Dragon left…" she said, rubbing her chin. Qrow walked over next to her, scratching his chin in the same way, almost like he was mocking her. "Yeah… weird huh?" he said. All the while, Blake was just laying there, rubbing against my side, completely unphased by what was going on around her.

That ended whenever I felt the plan hit a particularly rough bit of turbulence, my stomach lurching as my hand flew up to my mouth. Blake leaned back, slowly rubbing circles on my lower back again. "Thanks…" I muttered from behind my hand, shutting my eyes and trying to keep from vomiting. "Here." Qrow said, tossing what looked like a brown bag towards me. I took it, quickly opening it as we hit another batch of turbulence. I threw up, thankfully it _was_ just bile, into the bag, just before sealing it and handing it to Ren, who quickly overhanded it towards our seats. With any luck it wouldn't get all over our luggage. We just sat like this for awhile, Qrow having another barf-bag on standby as Blake just rubbed circles on my back, lightly patting my shoulder. "Thanks for this Blake." I muttered, still trying to keep my stomach acid in my stomach and not all over the floor. Blake shrugged, smiling towards me, "Just returning the favor." she said. I would've asked what she meant, but the moment we hit another spot of turbulence my hands flew up to my mouth, Qrow tossing me the bag. Only one thought repeating in my head as I threw up again.

" _I. Hate. Flying."_


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter eight: Homecoming

" _Finally_." I thought as I stepped off the plane, finally onto solid ground again. It took every ounce of willpower I had not to just fall down and never get back up. The rest of the flight had been, surprisingly, uneventful, other than Blake trying to keep me from throwing up the rest of the way and me petting her ears for a major part of it. I felt a hand on my shoulder as I turned, seeing Qrow standing there, Coco behind him directing the terrified passengers away from us. "You alright kid?" he asked. I nodded, still gaining my bearings of the solid ground. I smiled slightly, "Yeah, fine. Just not the best flyer." I said. He nodded, looking down before he smirked. He started walking away, chugging back one of his flasks. "Yeah, take care of the kitty eh? She's one of the good one's." he said. I cocked an eyebrow towards him, but then I traced where his eyes had been, blushing slightly.

During the plane ride I'd taken Blake's hand at some point, and it seemed as if I'd forgotten to let go. I looked at Blake, whose eyes met mine, her face just as red. I hastily let go, "Uh, sorry." I said somewhat nervously. She nodded, looking ahead, "It's fine." she said. We stood there in silence for a moment, until someone decided to interrupt. "I've got all our luggage, nothing was damaged in the firefight." I heard Ren say from behind me. I turned, smiling slightly for the distraction he offered. "That's good, so… you guys hungry?" I asked, grabbing my luggage from Ren. We'd booked two rooms in a hotel and I had an… ally, to see. Blake nodded, "I haven't eaten yet." she said. Ren nodded as well, "A bit. Could use a drink more though." he said, smirking slightly. I sighed, but I knew what he meant. Back in Vale, illegal or underage drinking was dealt with harshly, but in Mistral? Oh, you'd find a drunk teen on every corner.

" _Better than him being on White Lady… well, that's what Nora called it anyway._ " I thought. Ren never called it that but hell, I'd take a drunk Ren over a rampaging one with a machine gun any day of the week. "Don't worry Ren, I know a place around here where we can get some decent food, _and_ some good cocktails." I said, smiling slightly. Sure, I didn't drink as much as Ren or Nora… _god_ if I drank as much as Nora… but I was no stranger to the devil's brew. Ren smiled while Blake just gave me that odd look. I didn't even need to ask what she meant. "Blake, it's a long story." I said, reading her look instead of her words. She flinched back a bit, but then just nodded, swinging her backpack over her shoulder. "Alright then, how far's the hotel?" she asked. I pointed off to the left, "It's just that way, we'll be staying at the in inn." I said.

"Did you just say the In Inn?" Ren asked. I nodded, I'd stayed there many times myself after all. "Yes." I said simply. Blake was the next one to question me, "In, twice?" she asked. I sighed, rubbing the bridge of my nose, people _always_ were like that about the name the first time around. "Look it'll make sense when we get there." I said. Ren nodded, not taking it further as he and I started walking. I looked back, seeing Blake still standing there, then she seemed to shake herself out of her stupor, rushing to keep up with us, wheeling her suitcase behind her as me and Ren were ours. We walked in silence across the sidewalk as I took in my surroundings. The buildings, with their slanted tiled roofs and familiar architecture… they looked just like I remembered them, from three years ago.

" _Jaune! Please!_ "

I turned, reaching for my gun, only to find Blake behind me, an empty street beyond her. She jumped back, her eyes widening as she turned, then she turned back, confusion clear in her eyes. "What was that?" she asked, walking up next to me. I sighed, letting my hand thud lazily against my thigh. "Nothing just… nothing." I said, patting my pocket. "Here." Ren said, holding out a cigar, my preferred brand to. I took it, cocking an eyebrow at him. "What? You left it in my car last week, just smoke it, we know you want to." he said. I nodded, not questioning it much more as I pulled out my lighter, igniting the cigar as I inhaled, exhaling smoke as I felt the painful memory dulled, the voice calling out to me, but fading more and more. "Why do you smoke anyway Jaune?" Blake asked. I looked back over my shoulder, blowing out a puff of smoke to the side. I just smiled, "The smoke dulls the pain." I said cryptically, turning back towards the sidewalk.

Before Blake could interject I turned, smiling when I saw the sign. "We're here." I said simply. The sign above us was over a large building, the words 'The In Inn' created with neon lights. "Oh, _that's_ what you meant." Ren said, slowly nodding. Blake did the same, but her eyes still looked towards me with that same curiosity… guess she never knew what that did to the cat. "Yep. Ren, the room's under your name, not mine. Go ahead and check us in." I said. Ren gave me an odd look but, likely from being used to this kind of thing by now, nodded, walking towards the front desk. The moment he was gone I felt a grip on my upper arm. I looked over, grabbing my cigar with my left hand as Blake spoke, "'Dulls the pain'? What _pain_ could you be dulling?" she asked, glaring towards me. I sighed, letting out a puff of smoke again. "Do you believe in ghosts Blake?" I asked, looking down at her out of the corner of my eye.

She looked at me incredulously, "If this is some kind of 'cats can see the dead joke', it's not funny." she said, frowning. I chuckled at the thought of it, "That wasn't it but I _wish_ I'd thought of that first. I might have to use that someday…" I said, looking away from her. Blake sighed, facepalming as I looked behind her bow, seeing the little bit of pink felt from her ears falling down, both her ears flattening. "Great, another punster ( **a/n- not taking credit for that, that's DragonManMax's joke** )." she muttered beneath her breath. I smiled a bit wider as I took out my cigar, letting out a puff of smoke into the air before I breathed in the smoke again, the light the tip made reaching the brim of my fedora. "What did you mean?" she asked. I sighed, shaking my head slightly, "You didn't answer the question." I said. Blake growled at me before she sighed, seemingly trying to calm herself down.

"No. I don't believe in ghosts. What does that have to do with anything?" she asked, clearly getting frustrated. I looked out into the streets, completely void of anything resembling life. Then again, it _was_ the middle of the workday. It was a small port city, nothing like Vale. Most people wouldn't be getting off of work for another hour. "I do. One in particular keeps coming back, the smoke makes her go away for awhile." I said. I turned around, heading towards the inside of the hotel, where Ren was heading towards us already, three keys in his left hand. He nodded, tossing the two keys towards me. I caught them in my right hand, wheeling my suitcase with my other hand. I held out my palm towards Blake. "Yours is 214." I said, holding my cigar between my lips. "Pardon me sir, but this hotel is a no-smoking environment." I heard someone say. I sighed, looking towards the man as I let go of my suitcase, taking my cigar in my other hand.

"Since when?" I asked, my expression unwavering. I'd stayed at the hotel plenty of times, _never_ had there been a problem with my smoking. The man pointed behind him at a no smoking sign I hadn't noticed, "As of last month. Sir, is this going to be a problem? Will we be forced to remove you and company from your quarters because of this?" he asked, glaring at me. I shook my head, reaching into my coat and grabbing out a knife. I handed Blake the keys, "Hold onto these." I said quickly before I took the cigar out, slicing off the end of my knife. I normally didn't bother, cigar's tasted different the second time you smoked them. It was either much better, or much, much worse. I stuck it in my pocket before I set my knife back where it was, grabbing my suitcase. "They'll be anymore problems?" I asked, walking towards him. He took a step back before he shook his head, "Um, no sir. That was all. Shall I lead you to your room?" he asked.

I shook my head, smiling slightly, "No need. I know the way. Rooms 213 and 214, both on the second floor, three doors down from the third staircase from the exit door." I said. The man's eyes widened as he turned, swiftly walking away to go back to his duty. Which, based on his uniform, was likely holding the door open for customers. Blake looked at me oddly and, heck, so did Ren. I nodded to Blake, "Come on, let's get settled in." I said. Without another word I started walking, and if the sounds were anything to go by, Blake and Ren quickly followed me. I clutched the key in my now free left hand as I felt the slight bit of annoyance towards the new policy fade away with every step. " _I can smoke later… hopefully._ " I thought.

After a turn up the stairs, a walk three doors down, we were at the rooms. "How do you know this place so well?" Blake asked, walking up next to me. I smiled, "I've stayed here a few times." I said simply. Even Ren seemed to comment on this, "Wait, how many times? You've never brought me here before." he said. I shrugged as I twisted the key in me and Ren's room, Blake's being next door. We all walked in and, before I tossed my suitcase on the bed, I answered. "A dozen, at least. I did a lot of things before we became partners." I said. I would've just left it at that, just let it sit for awhile until it became relevant again. They didn't need to know yet.

Of course, Blake didn't work that way.

"Like what?" she asked. That one question, the only one I'd wished she'd never ask. Or _anyone_ for that matter, not just her. "Let's just say I wasn't always a detective and leave it at that." I said simply, unzipping my suitcase and starting to unpack my own clothes. Ren took it as it was, walking past me and setting up on the bed closer to the wall. This room had no windows, one vent, one way in and out. We were relatively close to the exit, and I'd stayed in the same room countless times. I turned, seeing Blake still standing there, her stare almost burning through me, as if looking for a weakness. It was a futile effort, she wouldn't find one while I was on the ground. In the air on the other hand…

"Like what you see?" I asked, smirking towards Blake when I saw she hadn't reacted to me turning around. Blake looked away, frowning as I saw her cheeks burn a little brighter. "I'll go unpack my things." she said, turning away and walking back towards her own room, shutting the door to ours in the process. I turned back around, continuing to unpack my clothes, only to feel yet another pair of eyes on me. I looked up, blue eyes meeting pink one's as Ren smiled slightly. "No…" I said, drawing it out since I knew what he was going to say. Of course, despite my warning, he said it anyway. "You like Blake, don't you Jaune?" he asked. I sighed, continuing to pack my clothes into the drawers as I replied, "Ren, I was making a joke. Do _not_ , make this into another Velvet conversation." I said. Ren sighed, slowly shaking his head, no doubt remembering that day. "Not one of my best moments…" he muttered.

I nodded as I finished putting up my clothes, zipping my suitcase and setting it beneath the bed. "Exactly. Your sense of 'romance' isn't exactly that great. I mean, look at Nora. Just… just _look_ at her!" I said. Ren glared at me, reaching into his jacket. " _What_?" he asked. I shook my head, holding out my hands. "That's not what I meant! I meant Nora and you aren't exactly a _normal_ relationship! I mean for crying out loud the two of you met when she had a shotgun barrel on your forehead!" I said, fear creeping in on the edges of my voice. Ren wasn't crazy, but he certainly wasn't above killing people, and for insulting or hitting on Nora, he was _much_ more creative than bullets. Ren nodded, putting his hand down, "Oh… that makes more sense." he said, nodding to himself. I didn't ask what it made more sense than, I didn't try and psychoanalyze Ren, it never ended well for me.

Instead, I just walked to the door, looking back at him as he finished putting away his things. "I'll get Blake, we'll meet you in the lobby." I said as I grabbed the key from the still opened door, holding up my fedora and taping the key inside, along with my wallet. I shut the door, walking over to Blake's. I knocked, waiting for a response. "Jaune?" I faintly heard through the door. I nodded almost out of habit, knowing she couldn't hear me. "Yeah, it's me." I said. I could hear the nervousness on the edge of her voice as she responded. "Hey, can you come help me with this?" she asked. I sported a confused expression, but slowly nodded, opening the door. "Sure? What is it?" I asked when I opened the door, only to clearly see what it was… and why her voice was so hard to hear.

I could see Blake, well, half of her anyway, still as always. Though, her head and hands were beneath the bed, her lower half bent at an odd angle. I kept my confused expression. "Uh, how… how did you get like this?" I asked, trying to fathom what _possible_ reason she had for being in this state. "I uh, dropped something beneath the bed. I've got it just… if you could lift the bed up a little so I could get my head out." she said. I nodded, walking over to it. " _How exactly did she… I don't wanna know._ " I thought as I crouched down, picking up beneath the sides of the bed. "Alright, on three I'll lift, and you move back, alright?" I asked. I heard a meek noise of approval from beneath the bed, and I took it as a go for it. "Alright, one, two, three!" I said, lifting up the bed a good two inches at least. I heard the sound of scuffling and, oddly, I high noise of panic. Succumbing to my curiousity, I looked back, frowning at what I saw as I let the bed fall back down.

In Blake's left hand was a comb, which I expected, nothing out of the ordinary there. In her right, on the other hand, was what looked to be a small rat. It was clawing at her hand and squealing in distress. I looked at her eyes, the at the rat, then back at her. "You know we're going to eat right? Might not want to spoil your dinner." I said, smirking slightly when I saw her face burn bright red. "T-That's not- How dare- YOU FIEND!" she yelled, throwing the rat at me as she shut her eyes. I just raised a hand, catching it. I looked at the rat, and I could've sworn it looked back at me, asking the same question I was. " _Is she serious_?" we seemed to share. I set the rat down, letting it scurry back into a small hole in the wall before I moved the nightstand, covering it. I looked back to Blake, seeing her staring right at me, her face bright red and her eyes clouded with rage and embarrassment. "Yeash, relax. I was joking. I know you don't _actually_ eat rats. Though, uh, _why_ … did you have it in your hand?" I asked.

She looked away, "I dropped my comb and kicked it beneath the bed, then a rat ran under. I didn't think okay!" she said, glaring at me. I chuckled, "You know, I think this is the most emotion you've ever shown me." I said, leaning back against the wall. She growled, jumping up and slamming a hand into the wall, glaring up at me, trapping me between her arms. "Do you _really_ want to piss me off?! Cause it's working!" she said, baring her teeth in a way I'd liken to a tiger or some other large cat. I surprised her by wrapping my arms around her, leaning down. "Blake. Are you _really_ angry at me? If you are, just say so, and I'll stop." I said, giving her what I called the 'Ren stare'. Also known as showing no emotion so people took me seriously. Her gaze softened as she looked away, "No… I'm not _really_ angry just… annoyed, that's all. You remind me _way_ too much of Yang." she said, smiling slightly.

I let her go, and she stepped back, both of us regaining our composure after the brief break in our normal actions. I walked past her, grabbing her hand, "I'll wait outside, grab your room key and let's go." I said, looking back over my shoulder. I saw her pull her hand back, nodding, her face still dusted with pink. She nodded, "Alright, give me a second." she said. I nodded back, walking out of the door and shutting it behind me. Then, I walked over to me and Ren's room, testing the door. Sure enough, Ren locked it. " _Best make sure Blake doesn't forget that._ " I thought. That was a mistake you only made once. I just leaned back, looking around the hallway as I normally did when I was waiting. It was empty, as I expected, the only exceptions being the occasional paintings and plants lining the walls.

A minute or so later, Blake walked out, turning and locking the door behind her. " _Good, I don't have to remind her._ " I thought. She looked towards me, holding out a hand, "Care to guide me?" she asked. I nodded, smiling slightly as I took her hand, walking towards the door. I hadn't noticed before, but her hand was really… soft, for someone that used a gun so often. I'd have thought her hands would be calloused, like mine. I concentrated on our goal, both of us walking down the stairs, hand in hand, towards the lobby. Now, I knew the place inside and out, every crack, bump, and fault in the stairs I knew almost by heart at this point. Blake, on the other hand, had no such luxury. I felt her lurch on the fourth step up from the lobby, and I reacted, moving around so I was in front of her. "Oof!" she said as I reached up, wrapping my arms around her back and swinging her around, setting her on the lobby floor. I stepped down, our hands still linked, as I smirked.

"Guess a cat always does land on it's feet… well, with a little help from me at least." I said. Blake sighed, but a saw the ghost of a smile on her face. I turned back to the lobby, seeing Ren waiting by the front doors, smiling towards us. Me and Blake walked towards him, ignoring the eyes of everyone around us. Most of which weren't even focused on us anyway. When the two of us got over to Ren, he took one look down and smiled at me. "No huh?" he asked. I looked down, so did Blake. When we looked up, our eyes meeting, we both blushed, looking away from each other. "Let's get going. It's not far." I said, walking out past Ren, towards the restaurant I knew of. I heard both of my companions following behind me after a moment, both catching up and walking at my sides.

It took us maybe ten minutes of walking through the streets, passing maybe two cars along the way, before we got to the restaurant. It was a small place, maybe about the size of the building my office was in… well, the first floor anyway. The name was 'A Simple Wok', it was a large restaurant chain around here, with even rumors of expanding into Vale in the near future. I walked towards it, Blake deciding to voice her opinion. "This is the place? What do they serve here?" she asked. I shrugged, "A few things. Steamed vegetables, noodles, fish," I stopped when I saw her eyes light up slightly. "Among other things." I said, trying not to let the stop be too noticeable. The three of us walked over to the restaurant, seeing the familiar 'Come in, we're open!' sign on the front. So I pushed open the door, a bell chiming as I walked towards the counter.

The place itself was pretty nice. A few tables, some booths, a nice mistralean architecture, reminiscent of the old style of decoration, with the wood frames and cloth panels over them. Though, the windows and air conditioning sort of broke that, but heck, I wasn't about to complain. I walked up to the bar counter, behind which was an assortment of wines and liquors that rivaled even Juniors. Ren looked at them, smiling towards me, "Why'd you never tell me about this place?" he asked. I shrugged, smiling towards him, "We've never been to Mistral together, remember?" I said, pointing out the fact he'd seemingly forgot. I turned back to the front, finding a woman walking out from the back, smiling towards the three of us. "Welcome! Welcome! Sorry about the late delay, dealing with some last minute delivery issues." she said, smiling towards us.

She was dressed almost like a geisha, her face hidden by a white mask, her body by a flower pink kimono. Her hair flowed down to her shoulders, and in her hands was a little notepad, ready to take orders. I smiled, "Give me the Tuesday special." I said. I didn't need to look at it, it was always the same. Blake and Ren, on the other hand, looked up at the large ink writings on the wall, what acted as the menu for this place. "Give me a small bowl of noodles, and a shot of whiskey." he said. The woman seemingly smiled behind her mask, "Which one sweetie?" she asked, her voice a bit higher pitched than a moment ago. Ren shrugged, leaning back a bit, "Don't care. Just make it strong." he said. The woman nodded, then turning to Blake, "What'll yo-" "Give me the fish special." Blake said, an intensity in her eyes that seemed to frighten the woman, her flinching back a bit before she wrote it down, tearing it off before wandering back a bit where she placed it on a hook, only for a long arm to snatch it back.

As the woman poured Ren a shot of some golden brown bottle I vaguely recognized as whiskey, I started talking. "Get many customers lately?" I asked, smiling at the geisha woman. She shook her head as she set Ren's shot glass down, looking towards me with that permanent smile. "Not really, been real quiet around here thanks to those Branwen bandits holding up nearby…" she said. My eyes widened as I leaned in a bit, my eyes taking on the same intensity as Blake's when she asked for fish. "Where are they exactly?" I asked. The woman looked back and forth, and even behind the mask, I could tell she was nervous. "Look, I shouldn't have told you that in the first place. They've got the whole town scared, I can't exactly tell you." she said.I smiled, standing up and walking behind the counter, the woman backing up. "I don't think you realize who you're dealing with geisha." I said, giving her a smile, but there was no emotion. The woman stepped back, "W-Who are you?" she asked.

"Name's Jaune. Jaune _Arc_."

The woman stepped back further, bowing down at the waist. "I-I'm terribly sorry! I didn't realize! I-" "Tell me. Where. They. Are." I said, glaring down at her. She gulped standing back up, "They're at the mountain pass, a few miles from the city limits. Do you want to know anything else?" she asked. I shook my head, regaining my genuine smile, "Nope. Just go back to doing your job, that was all I needed." I said. I turned, walking back towards my chair with that same small smile on my face as the woman poured a glass of water, slowly walking back towards the door. Exactly what I expected was going to happen, happened. Blake started asking questions. "Okay, _what_ was that about?" she asked. I sighed, slowly taking a drink of water to think over my response. When I set it down, I had my answer, "I told you before, locals don't look too kindly on people that ask too many questions. Sometimes you have to lean on them a little to get things done." I said.

Blake wasn't satisfied with that. "No, what was with your _name_? The second you said it she got all terrified of you, what was _that_ about?" she asked. Even Ren seemed to want to join in on the conversation, "Yeah, you were _never_ like this in Vale." he said. I sighed as I took another drink, the woman having disappeared into the kitchen. "My family aren't pushovers, you _don't_ want to piss them off." I said simply. Blake's eyes still burned with that familiar curiosity, and even Ren's had a spark of that in them. Though, thankfully, before either could answer, the woman came back out with our food. She set it down in front of us, but before she could speak, I saw her stand up straight. "Mi- Miss Arc! I hadn't expected you so-"

BANG!

"GAH!" Blake yelled, jumping back from the now dead woman. "Don't make us wait." I heard, the voice sending chills down my spine. Three years later, three _fucking_ years… and she was still terrifying. I stood, reaching into my jacket for Crocea Mors. "Hold it right there fedora. Turn around." she said. I slowly turned, my eyes widening a bit as I saw her. She looked different sure, dressed in a tuxedo with long, flowing blonde hair, and bright blue eyes to match. Her eyes hardened as she saw me. " _Jaune._ " she said, not disguising the anger in her voice. I nodded, "Jasmine." I said simply. The girl grit her teeth, walking towards me. "Don't you _dare_ say my name!" she yelled, baring her teeth. I hadn't moved my hand from my coat, but she didn't seem to care. Ren had his gun out, aimed right at her, and Blake had already drawn hers. "Who _is_ this girl?" Ren asked. I sighed, there was no hiding it now, "Blake, Ren, this is my sister, Jasmine." I said. She growled at me, pressing the barrel into my forehead, "You have _no_ right to call me your sister after what you did to Citri!" she yelled. I saw the tears in her eyes, even after all these years she couldn't get over it. I didn't blame her. Hell, I couldn't either. "How could you Jaune!? Why!?" Then, she finally told Blake and Ren what they'd wanted to know, why I left Mistral.

"HOW COULD YOU _MURDER_ YOUR OWN SISTER!?"


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter nine: Past pains

 **(a/n- be advised readers, for the first part of this… uh, part, things will be told from Blake's point of view. How will you know when it's back to normal? Well… Eh, I'll figure something out later, just pay close attention. Anyway, enjoy the story everybody!)**

My eyes widened as the woman, who was apparently Jaune's sister, shouted. Everything was quiet, me and Ren digesting what she just said. What? Jaune had _murdered_ his own sister? "Guess some things never change," Jaune said, interrupting my chain of thought. Jasmine seemed to be about to speak, but Jaune spoke faster, "You're still the biggest hypocrite in Mistral." he said, glaring at the girl with the machine gun barrel pointed at his head. She growled towards him, "The hell are you talking about?!" she asked. Jaune glared down at her, his eyes flashing dangerously. "Where was this sense of family when you _butchered_ Ora." he said, and you could tell he was gritting his teeth.

Jasmine smiled slightly, chuckling, "She was a traitorous bitch, _you_ killed a family member." "You have a _very_ bad interpretation of that word." Jaune said right back, drawing his own gun and aiming it at her head. Now it was a standoff, both with guns aimed at each other, neither wanting or willing to pull the trigger. It would end with one of them dead. The only question was, who would shoot first? "Who's Ora?" I asked, keeping my gun on Jasmine. Jasmine smirked, "You, Little Kitty, might know her as 'Gold knight'." she said. I gulped, I knew that name, I'd know it anywhere. She knew my codename, and the name of a dead beacon heavy. She knew all about us. "Oh? Surprised? I know _all_ about Beacon, you, even that busty whore you came to find." she said, twisting her head so she was looking right at me.

"And you killed her. The moment you found out she worked for Beacon, you killed her without hesitation." Jaune said, glaring towards her. She swung her head back towards him, "Of course I did, I was following mother's orders. _You_ on the other hand, tried to run away. Citri tried to talk you out of it, and you shot her dead without a second thought!" she yelled, tears still running down her face. Jaune took advantage of her distraction, pulling her gun off to the side, bullets ripping through the cloth panels behind us. I felt a hand on my back as Ren pulled me away from the bullets, keeping me from dying instantly. I looked back, seeing Jaune headbutt his sister, knocking her down. He spun her gun around, firing a few rounds into her leg before he tossed it away, aiming Crocea Mors at her head. "AHH! Jaune wait! Let's… let's talk about this!" she said, holding out her hand as I saw real fear in her eyes. "Just let me go!" she said. Jaune didn't even flinch, "You'd only come after us."

BANG!

I heard a ringing in my ears as I saw Jaune step off of his sister's corpse, her face now just a bloody mess from the bullet. He popped open the cylinder, ejecting the spent shells and loading in new one's with the expertise of someone who'd done it a million times. When I finally got my hearing back, I heard Jaune speak, him gathering the shells from the ground and sticking them in his pocket. "Let's get moving. We've got a bandit to find." he said. I walked over to him, grabbing his arm as he put away his gun. "What the HELL was that Jaune!? She was _surrendering_ to you!" I yelled, glaring up at him. The glare he sent a chill up my spine, and for a moment, I saw a glimpse of a man I didn't know. One that killed without hesitation, without remorse, without fear.

It was an assassin's look if I'd ever seen one.

"She would've come after us. The other five of them would've came to kill us, they'd have gotten us arrested and murdered in just a day. I can't… no, I _won't_ let my past get you two killed." he said, looking towards me and Ren. The look was gone, the same, funny and kind Jaune I'd become used to surfacing again. I was kind of glad, the other look freaked me out. "Jaune… no more." I said, glaring at him as intensely as I could. Jaune raised an eyebrow, opening his mouth to speak. But I got there first. "No more secrets, no more cloak and dagger, no more hiding all this! I want the truth, _now_!" I said, gripping onto his arm. He sighed, looking down at his sister's corpse. I saw sadness in his eyes as he reached for his pocket, putting his cigar right back in his mouth and lighting it. He reached up, coughing as he looked down at the thing in disgust. "Yep, worse." he muttered.

 **(a/n- okay, obvious sign telling everyone it's back to normal point of view here)**

I put my lighter back in my pocket, a bad cigar was better than no cigar I guess. "I'll tell you everything… _after_ we get out of the middle of a crime scene." I said, gesturing to the murdered geisha and my older sister. Blake still glared at me, but nodded nonetheless. Ren walked over, grabbing his whiskey. I gave him an odd look, "What? I wasn't done." he said, sipping at it with a small smile, as if completely unphased by what had just happened. It didn't surprise me, it took a lot to get Ren to show any large degree of emotion, barring a small smile or glare. I stepped over the growing blood-pool and out into the sidewalk, leaving the gruesome scene behind. I didn't really know where I was going, I just started walking, trying to get as far as possible from the scene of the crime.

When I started paying attention again, I found that my legs had taken me to one of my favorite spots growing up. The local bookstore. It was quiet, out of the way, and most importantly to the younger me, it sold comic books as well as regular books. "In here." I said, walking in through the doors. Ren and Blake followed, the three of us heading towards the far back table I frequented. My signature was still there, carved into the wooden table. " _Jaune Arc was here. Hehe, ten years later._ " I thought as I absently traced it with my right hand. Blake looked down, her eyes widening a bit, "You've been here before?" she asked. I nodded, smiling towards her, "What? You thought you were the only one that read books?" I asked, smirking slightly. She sighed, shaking her head as she looked back up at me. "Okay, we're someplace quiet. Start talking." she said.

I smiled, "The irony of that… you're right." I said, stopping myself from making a joke for once. "What do you want to know?" I asked, looking towards Blake. Ren sat there, sipping his whiskey and grabbing a nearby book, one in a language I couldn't read. I almost forgot he was from Mistral too originally. "Everything." Blake said simply, her eyes having that same intensity as when she wanted something. I put out my cigar, the smoke was bad for the books, and tossed it in the trash behind me. "I was born seventeen years ago, to June and Jonathan Arc. Me and my twin sister Ora were the youngest, so we stuck together. My sister's took up roles in the clan, and I…" I looked down, seeing my left hand curling into a fist in anger. Not towards anyone… towards myself, for what I let myself become. I saw a soft hand wrap over mine, and I looked up, seeing Blake giving me a small smile. "It's alright. Just calm down." she said.

I took a breath, then exhaled, smiling slightly. "Thanks. Anyway I… I was a hitman. Someone abandoned the clan? Someone hard to kill? Someone need dead to send a message? They sent me." I said, my smile settling back into a frown as I just looked down at mine and Blake's hand, hers trying to comfort mine, which quickly clenched into a fist at the memories I was stirring up. "How many?" she asked, looking up at me. I sighed, resting my head in my other hand, shutting my eyes as I saw it, the muzzle flash, pictures of random people flashing past me. "Too many. Way too many." I said simply, opening my eyes again. "I was ordered to kill Ora, my own twin sister. I… I just couldn't. I had her lined in my sights, right there… but I couldn't pull the trigger. So, Jasmine finished it… I should've killed her, right then and there. Maybe me and Ora… maybe Ora wouldn't have had to suffer so much." I said, trying to control my breathing.

"Go on." Blake said, standing up and walking over to the seat beside me. I sighed, "For Yakuza, if you disobey the clan, you're dishonored. They ordered me to… well, kill myself. That was the only order I refused. So… they sent my sister, Citri. She was the oldest, and the most skilled. She tried to convince me to come back, and I refused… Look at this," I said as I pulled apart my trenchcoat, pulling up the white shirt I wore beneath it slightly, exposing my stomach. Blake gasped, her hand going over her mouth as even Ren looked up for a second. Along my stomach, a diagonal slash, it was stitches, a scar from three years prior. "Yeah… she gutted me. So… I shot her. I thought I was dead anyway, my family would get their corpse. Then… she saved me…" I said, smiling slightly as I put my shirt back down, pulling my coat back.

"Who did?" Blake asked, raising an eyebrow. I smiled, looking upwards, I saw a book, entitled 'The Velveteen Rabbit'. "Velvet. When she found me, she brought me back to where she was staying. She patched me up and… well, we got on the next plane to Vale. I thought at first she was a Mistral native but… I guess now she was just hiding out there while… you know, the heat of her death blew over." I said, smiling at the memory. Sure it was practically hell level pain, but something about Velvet made it easier to deal with. She was good with people like that… when she got up the courage to talk to them that is. "How come you never told me this?" Ren asked, setting an empty glass on the table, his eyes only slightly hazy. I smirked, "You never asked." I said.

I jumped slightly when I felt a pressure on my side, and when I looked down, I felt my face tint light pink. Blake had leaned in, hugging me and burying her head in my shoulder. "You've been through so much… I'm so sorry…" she said, her eyes filled with pity. I smiled, wrapping an arm around her, "Thanks Blake… but you've got nothing to be sorry for. I made my choices… and looking where I am now, I wouldn't change a thing… okay maybe I would've invested in motion sickness training when I was younger but, other than that." I said. Blake giggled, smiling up at me as she leaned back. I couldn't help but chuckle slightly, it was always nice when she laughed, and a rare sound to hear to. I looked back down at the desk, tracing my hand along my signature. "That's why I'm so familiar with that hotel. I stayed there all the time… whenever a target was trying to get away. Hehe, funny really, now I'm here to _stop_ a murder instead of do one." I said.

Ren nodded, closing his book and setting it back on the shelf behind him. "Do you still feel them? The urges?" he asked, his eyes showing a curiosity more intense than even Blake's. It was the one look I knew better than any other, telling me to come clean. "Yeah. Sometimes. I tried alot of things to dull them, cigarettes, liquor, then I came to cigars. They were a little less… painful, than the others. They dulled it better." I said, smiling slightly. Blake raised an eyebrow, her mouth shifting slightly to the left, "Wait, what _urges_?" she asked. I looked at Ren, both of us having small smiles as we shared a look. Innocence. Blake still had it… well, more than the two of us at least. "To hunt. To kill. The urge to fight. Arc clan members are trained to have that 'killer instinct' from birth. If you were born without it, or if you simply couldn't do it, you were exiled, or even killed sometimes. A way to 'keep the clan strong'... can't believe I bought those lies once…" I said, looking outside the window at the outside world.

I always liked doing that when I was in the midst of a crisis or remembering something painful. Watching how, despite the fact I just shot Jasmine, the captain of the Vale police department was looking for a serial killer, Neo was hiding with Nora, and the three of us were looking for a bandit that was formerly a member of the secret organization of Beacon… everything kept going. People still walked the streets, cars still moved along the roads… nothing ever stopped. It just kept going, with, or without you. It always reminded me that, no matter how bad things got, someone else always had it worse. " _Hey, could be worse. Citri could've killed me all those years ago._ " I thought. It could always be worse… words that kept me going for three years.

I took my arm out from around Blake, smiling down at her. "Now, we've got a bandit to find." I said, standing up. Blake nodded, both her and Ren standing back up. I started walking towards the door, walking side by side with Blake and Ren, only for me to stop. The reason? I felt someone's hand on my shoulder. I turned, looking out of the corner of my eye to see no one there. " _Thank you._ " I heard. I smiled as I heard it, opening the door out into the street, heading for the gates out of town. I knew it wasn't real, I knew it was just my imagination… though, maybe it wasn't. I turned, looking towards the hotel we stayed at… and I could see myself up there. Younger, smaller, with colder eyes. I could see myself looking through the scope of my rifle, aiming down at targets. Even back then I knew I hated it, even back then I knew the pain when I killed someone. I could see myself setting down the rifle, smiling slightly. I turned back, and I could almost see Ora, standing right where I was… this was the spot I decided she shouldn't die.

" _You're welcome sis._ "

It took us ten minutes to get to the edge of town, right past the ornate gate that, at one time, had been used to keep enemies from entering. Now though, it was just the frame, keeping out no-one. Sad really, they could really use that gate about now. I turned back ahead, seeing the mountain pass the Geisha waitress was talking about, the low valley between the two mountains. They would be stationed just outside, a checkpoint within it. It was a footpath, so if you stuck to the roads, you might be safe. They'd likely come down from the pass to attack travellers or caravans, maybe even armored trucks, who knew how strong they were? "Is that where we're going?" Blake asked, pointing towards the pass. I nodded, reaching into my jacket, the feeling of Crocea Mors in my jacket calming me with it's familiar weight. "Yep. If that woman was to be believed, we'll find Yang inside." I said.

The second we got up the pass, I saw the reason no one had tried to attack them yet. There were at least ten men patrolling along some makeshift wooden and steel walls, a large gate between them. All of them were carrying what seemed to be submachine guns or even a few riflemen. The second they saw us, every gun was pointed at us. "Don't move!" one of them yelled. I stopped, Ren and Blake following my example. "Let me do the talking." I whispered. I held up both hands, showing I wasn't armed. "We're here looking for Raven Branwen!" I yelled. The man looked to his left, seeing a much taller, bulkier man. The taller one was dressed in what looked to be a kimono, while the smaller one was dressed in what seemed to be a bulletproof vest, much like the others. Said man looked down, his eyes gazing over us. He walked up to the edge, "Recruits, couriers, or allies?" he asked simply, his voice sharp and loud. What I'd picture a drill sergeant would sound like.

"Allies." Blake said before I could speak. The man glared at us, then he did something I hadn't expected, and jumped down off the edge. The moment he landed, I saw him reach into his kimono, pulling out a katana. "Where is your blade?" he asked. Blake and Ren looked at one another, both slightly nervous. Though, I just smiled, reaching behind my back. The next time the man looked at me, I was holding out a katana. It was shorter than his granted, with ancient Mistralean runes on the sides. The man nodded approvingly, walking towards me. "Face me, Arc." he said. I nodded, removing my jacket, with Crocea Mors still in it, exposing my white shirt beneath it. I tossed my fedora onto the ground, right on top of my old trench coat.

"Fumeiyo yori shi1." I said, twisting my body around as I held the blade above my hand, my right hand first, then my left. The man smiled, "Fumeiyo yori shi." he said, nodding back to me as he simply held out his blade. Then, he let go, holding out his left hand and flexing it towards himself, asking me to strike first. I didn't disappoint him, I rushed forwards, my eyes zoning in on him as I tried to control my breathing. " _Strike swift Jaune, strike true_." I heard a voice in my head say. It was my father's, before his passing. I struck down, hearing the clang of my blade against his as I spun around, stepping on the other side of him. I started sidestepping to the right, my eyes narrowing on my target as he held up his blade, slowly walking towards me. Then, he reached into his kimono again, this time tossing it backwards.

On his chest was the familiar tattoo, the same one I had. He had it on his chest, the two lines, like headbands almost, both facing up. I stabbed my blade into the ground, quickly tossing my shirt back behind me, revealing the same tattoo on my left shoulder. The man's eyes widened before he smiled, "So… I was right." he said, rushing towards me. I picked up my blade, holding it up against his as he smiled. "No one else fights so much like a dancer." he said, kicking me back. I felt the wind get knocked out of me as I spun around, holding my blade back up as I landed near Blake, Ren having his gun out, pointed at the man. "Don't shoot Ren. He's not our enemy, if I'm right." I said, standing back up. I chuckled, "Maru Altan. I wasn't sure you survived the fire…" I said, sheathing my blade. He chuckled, sheathing his as well. "I could've sworn you'd died to Citri." he said, walking over to me.

He bowed, "It's a pleasure to see you again." he said. I placed my fist into my palm, bowing down as well. "The pleasure is mine Maru. Now… may we see her?" I asked, gesturing at the wall behind him. He nodded, walking back over towards the gate. "Certainly… just put your clothes back on before the black haired girl has a nosebleed." he said. I raised an eyebrow, but the second I turned around, I saw what he meant. Blake's face was bright red and, I realized it was a _little_ late to stop her having a nosebleed. Mostly considering the fact that there were a few drops of blood already dripping onto the ground. "Uh, Blake?" I asked as I pulled my shirt back on. She blinked twice, then looked at me. "Uh, I… Uh…" she said, opening and closing her mouth, trying to saw something. I pulled my coat on as I saw Ren waving a hand in front of her face, only for her not to react. "Uh… I think you broke her." Ren said, looking towards me.

I pulled my fedora on, pulling my coat back down slightly. I walked over, moving in front of Blake. "Blake? Hmm, lights on." I said, lightly tapping her forehead, only for her to blink and, otherwise not react. "Doesn't look like anyone's home. Hmm, let me try…" I said, reaching up and petting between her ears. The effect was instant, her leaning against me as I felt a low humming. Guess cats tended to purr when you pet them. After a second I stopped, Blake looking up at me for a second, her face still bright red. "Uh… didn't know you were a ninja…" she said, still trying to process what had just happened. I shrugged, "Well uh, you do now I guess. I mean, that isn't exactly much help fighting gun users but uh… let's just go see Yang." I said, grabbing her hand and lightly pulling her along as Ren, me, and Maru headed for the slowly opening gate.

On the inside, it was like we were transported to a whole other world. On the inside I saw people roaming around, makeshift wooden and steel buildings in a style that almost made it look like a shantytown. I mean, I guess that was kinda what it was. There were people in the buildings, some of them selling things by the looks of it, some drinking, even a few kids running around. "Woah, it's like it's own little city…" I said, looking around to even see what looked like a few farmers, growing things in garden plots. "In a sense, that's what it is. Anyone that is outcast in the cities, they come here. You're looking at our little mixed and matched group of bandits, criminals, faunus, humans. Everyone's welcome, so long as they follow the rules. Used to be this place was attacked by bandits almost every week. Though, since Raven showed up and offered this place protection in exchange for a base of operations… well, we've been doing a bit better." he said.

" _Explains why no one can attack her. Too many innocents around protecting her._ " I thought. They may have been the pariahs and least liked people of the cities, but they were still _people_. The government couldn't just storm the place without some serious repercussions. That and, well, the people here would fight for their homes if they had to. After a few minutes I saw us come up to a larger building, one that looked a bit newer than the others. It still had that hobbled together look, but it wasn't as run down as some of the other buildings. Granted, with some of the people walking around repairing them, I had a feeling this place would be just fine soon enough. Maru opened the door, and sitting right in front of me, was none other than Raven Branwen. She looked just like the picture, same eyes, same hair, same face, same everything. She was dressed in a red and black yukata, one that just came down to about her mid thigh. She had her left hand on what looked like a large, red and white helmet, set on the side of the couch. Her eyes flashed with recognition as she saw Blake.

"Maru, leave us." she said, her voice slightly deep and monotone, not what I'd guess Yang sounded like. Blake seemed taken aback, her eyes widening as she heard her voice. Maru nodded, bowing to Yang, "As you wish." he said, turning around and walking out the door. "Sit down." she said, gesturing to the couch in front of her. We complied, me in the middle with Blake and Ren on the sides. She leaned in, her hand casually resting on a small pistol on the table, right next to a bottle of wine. "Who are you?" she asked, looking towards me specifically. "Lie Ren." Ren said simply, jerking a thumb towards himself. "Jaune Arc." I said, not taking my eyes off her for a second. Blake didn't say a word as I leaned forwards, smiling slightly. "It took me awhile to track you down, Yang Xiao Long." I said. She flinched back a bit before her eyes hardened, her directing her gaze at Blake. "You told them?" she asked.

Blake looked away, rubbing her arm, "Sorry… I said a few things…" she said, her eyes saddening. I glared at Yang, "She was helping me. Coco and Qrow told me, don't pin this on her. You've got much bigger problems right now." I said. Yang cocked an eyebrow, "What?" she asked. I reached into my pocket, pulling out the picture of Raven, and of her. I tossed them towards her, her stopping them with the hand that was on the gun. "Ruby's looking for you. She hired me to find you." I said. She pulled the gun up, aiming it right between my eyes as Ren and Blake both aimed their guns at her. "Relax, I'm not telling her a thing. I came to get some answers." I said. Blake and Ren both set their guns back down, Yang slowly moving back, but keeping her gun pointed at me. "What do you want to know exactly?" she asked.

"I've gotten so many versions of the same story. I want the truth, and nothing _but_ the truth." I said, glaring at her. Blake had told me one thing, Winter told me one thing, Coco told me something different, Ruby told me something different, though I guessed she was lying about that. I wanted to know what the hell was really going on. Yang sighed, leaning back, "Where do you want me to start?" she asked, setting the gun down. I smiled, "Just answer some questions for me. Why did Winter and Blake send me on a wild goosechase that lead me to Coco just so I could find you?" I asked. Yang chuckled, smiling towards Blake. "She trusted you. Winter did too. Guess Coco made you a caretaker if you're here now. If Blake smelled something off about you, she'd have sent you to Qrow, and he'd have killed you straight away. We came up with the cover story of me looking for the white fang to hide my true intentions." she said.

"So the only reason I'm still alive is because Blake trusted me?" I asked, looking over at her. She rubbed behind her head, closing her eyes sheepishly, "Yeah… sorry about that." she said. I chuckled, "Well, seems I'm in your debt Little Kitty." I said, causing Blake to glare at me, blushing slightly. "Oh yeah, Coco told you about her codename? I came up with that by the way." Yang said, smirking towards Blake. Blake growled at Yang, "Oh you little…" Blake sighed, looking down at the ground. "Cat got your tongue?" me and Yang both asked at once. We turned towards each other, her eyes widening a bit. She smiled, "So, the detective's got a sense of humor huh?" she asked. I nodded, "Glad to see someone noticed." I said. Blake just leaned back in her seat, sinking down a bit. "Just… tell him about Winter." she said.

Yang nodded, "Right. Anyway, if Blake didn't find anything wrong with you, she'd take you to the ice Queen. You'd only be able to figure it out if you were working with Ruby, which was our second clue. If Winter sensed something wrong, she'd send you to Qrow, and he'd shoot you." she said casually. I nodded, "And Coco?" I asked. Yang nodded, moving her mask off to her right side, leaning against it slightly. "Well, if she found something wrong with you, she'd have-" "Sent me to Qrow and have him kill me?" I interrupted, smiling slightly. She nodded, smirking at me. "Guess you didn't find me by chance." she said. The she looked over at the door, "So if Coco found you alright, she'd tell you the truth. She'd offer you the chance to become a caretaker. Whether you took it or not, Qrow would find you, and tell you where I was. You're the only one that's showed up so far, and Ruby hasn't found me, so I'm guessing you sent _a lot_ of people to Qrow, right Blake?" Yang asked, smiling at said faunus. Blake nodded, "Sixteen actually. Winter sent four of the one's I let through, and Coco sent five of them." she said.

Yang nodded, "Yeah, she always was better at this kind of thing than us." she said. Blake nodded, smiling slightly, "Well, she's the recruiter heavy for a reason." she said. Ren just sat back, leaning against the couch as he looked around, taking in everything. I looked towards Yang, leaning in slightly. "Tell me, why is it Ruby wants you dead?" I asked. I mean, I figured Qrow was telling the truth, but I wanted to hear it straight from the source. She frowned, lightly rubbing her stomach, "Long story short, she found out who I was working with, and she shot me point blank in the stomach… with a .308 Winchester rifle. Then she tossed me out of a four story window… honestly I think she knew I'd live." she said. Ren decided now would be a good time to interject, "Are you sure she didn't just want you to die of your wounds?" he asked.

Yang shook her head, "Oh no. If she'd _really_ wanted me to die, we wouldn't be having this conversation. I'd have never made it out of the house. Ruby's a wildcard since our Summer went to work on her. And Dad more recently…" she said, glaring at the wall. I looked behind her, seeing a dartboard with what looked like Ruby on it, except it looked at little older than she was. I turned back around, seeing yang holding a dart, aiming it at the board. "What do you mean?" I asked, just before she threw the dart. "I mean, Ruby really _was_ a nice, sweet, innocent girl. She was small, fragile, and one of the most adorable people you'd ever know. She liked cookies and strawberries and wouldn't hurt a fly. But the day she turned ten, Summer started taking her into the attic… I'll never forgive that bitch for what she did to Ruby…" she said, grabbing what looked like a knife off the table and hurling it at the wall. I turned, seeing it cracking the dartboard in half.

I turned back, and the look in Yang's eyes reminded me distinctly of Blake's when Velvet brought up Adam. Primal rage, deep and true. "I'm almost afraid to ask what she did to Ruby." I said. She sighed, lowering deeper into the couch. "So many times Ruby would wake up in the night, screaming. 'Don't let the bad man get me Yang!' or 'Don't let mama take me to the attic!'... the worst one was when she said, 'Please, kill me.'... I love Ruby, don't get me wrong. Whatever Summer did to her… it turned her into something different, something evil. She started taking joy in hurting people. She started torturing people when they did her wrong. Someone pull her hair? Normally she'd cry and I'd beat them up. Now though, she'd take whatever was nearby and make them choke on it… _then_ she'd get creative." she said, shivering.

I couldn't help but ask my next question. "What about your dad?" I asked. Yang sighed, tilting her head back as she looked at the wooden ceiling. "It wasn't overtime, like Ruby. Just… one day he changed. Summer brought him to the back room and… that was it. He sounded like Dad, he sort of acted like dad, but he didn't _seem_ like dad. He was more loving towards Summer, and a little less towards me and Ruby. Not much but, I could _tell_ something was wrong. He was also a little more… showy. Like, everything he did was more flamboyant. I think he was just trying to impress Summer more than usual. Not to mention… he didn't have that _look_ , in his eyes, when he looked at me anymore. There was some kind of spark in his eyes back then… but that spark just disappeared. It really creeped me out. I don't know what Summer did to him… but I _hated_ it. Felt like now I was the only one that saw just how _wrong_ our family was… you know what I mean?" she asked, looking towards me.

I nodded, frowning at her. "Yeah… I know exactly what you mean." I said. It was exactly the same feeling I had in my family… was I really the only one that saw how wrong what we were doing was? "You know… I wish I was more like you." I said. She cocked an eyebrow, sitting back upright. "What? A bandit?" she asked. I shook my head, "No… instead of just standing by while injustice happened, you took action… I didn't." I said, looking down as I clenched my fists. I felt an arm on my shoulder as I looked to my left, seeing Blake holding her arm there. "It wasn't your fault Jaune… no-one can blame you for doing what you did." she said, smiling up at me. I sighed, I knew she was trying to comfort me, but it would never work. I'd done too much wrong to ever be comforted with a few kind words. "Yeah… but I still can. And I still do. I was a coward, pure and simple. Too weak to stand up to my family, too chicken-shit to fight back." I said, looking back towards Yang.

"You know… I have to ask. How did they get you to look so much like your mother?" I asked. Yang smiled, standing up as the three of us did the same. "This was _nothing_ for them. They can make you look like _anyone_. Me and my mom look pretty similar. A few tweaks to my face, some black hair dye, and some colored contacts and boom! I'm Raven Branwen, feared by criminals, loved by the people of Pariha." she said. I nodded, assuming that that was the name of the town. "Feared by criminals huh? So you only steal from criminals?" I asked. She nodded, smiling slightly, "The Branwen Bandits only steal from the families, like the Arc's or the Rose's. Or from other criminals. It damages their profits and keeps us thriving. Need money for bullet's somehow." she said, shrugging. I nodded, smiling slightly as I walked over to her. "Well, unless Ruby thinks you're dead, she'll keep coming after you." I said, smiling slightly. Yang nodded, scrunching her eyebrows slightly in thought, "You're right… hmm, here." she said, reaching behind her neck and unclipping what looked like a locket with a flaming yellow heart on it.

"Tell Ruby that was on my corpse. She'll believe you. It was my mother's last gift, and I'd never part with it if I had the option." she said, frowning towards the small trinket. "I know it's stupid but… it hurts to just give it up. No… no, I need Ruby off my back more than I need a keepsake." she said, nodding to herself as she pulled on her helmet. "Just… take it and leave, before I change my mind." she said, walking back over to the couch. I looked down, opening the locket and seeing what looked like a younger Yang, her mother… or I guess what she looked like now, standing behind her. The man I assumed was her father was standing behind her. On the other side, I saw a picture of Qrow and an older Ruby, assumingly Summer. There was something in Summer's arms but, the picture was blurry. It almost looked like a dog though. "Got it. Oh, and Yang?" I asked, smiling up at her. She looked back at me, not saying a word as Ren and Blake both walked out the door. I stepped out the door as I spoke,

"Xiao Long!"

1 For those that didn't watch Kong: Skull Island or didn't really pay close attention, this roughly translates to 'Death Before Dishonor'.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter ten: The Assassin's plan

 **(a/n- okay, we're gonna try something a little different here. In the first part I'll be doing a bit of an omake almost for this story. Something that, while I want to write about, doesn't really make sense in context with the story. Tell me if you guys would like more stuff like this or… you know, don't. Can't really make you respond. Anyway, on with the story! Er, omake er… whatever.)**

 **(a/n- Also sorry the title sucks… I couldn't come up with anything else.)**

 _Omake: First impressions (written from Ren's point of view)_

 _Hunger._

That was all I was thinking. All I could think about right now. I wanted food, I _needed_ it. I was just wandering through the woods, looking for edible plants, animals, hell, even a _rat_ would be helpful right about now. " _So this is what being deserted is like_." I thought as I moved through the bushes, looking for something. Then, I saw it. There was a campfire, and overtop of it, there were a few chunks of meat, on a spit over it. My stomach growled at the thought of food, but my head said no. I mean, it was _theirs'_ right? It wasn't mine. " _They're probably just camping. These are the same kind of people that made me this way._ " I thought to myself. Just one. Just one wouldn't hurt them, would it? I walked over, slowly stepping and looking around. All I saw was one sleeping bag, a head of orange hair lying down, facing the other direction with quiet snores emitting from it. "Just one girl, can't eat all three herself." I muttered to myself, slowly slinking over to the fire. Just as I stretched out to reach for them, I heard it.

"What do you think you're doing?"

It was a high voice, no doubt the voice of the sleeping girl. I slowly stood, turning around as my eyes widened. It was a rather pretty young girl, piercing blue eyes, short orange hair, oh yeah, and a double barrel shotgun pointed right at me. "I… wait, are you alone here?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. She smirked, "Depends, you single handsome?" she asked, winking at me. I felt my face flush slightly before I stepped back, only for her to keep the shotgun trained on me. "What were you trying to do?" she asked, narrowing her eyes at me. I was about to speak when, suddenly, I heard my stomach start growling. I reached a hand down, blushing slightly as the girl looked up, smirking at me. "Hungry huh?" she asked. I nodded, "Yeah… I'll just," "Sit down." she said. I raised an eyebrow but, not wanting to have a shotgun shell fired at my chest, complied, sitting across from her.

She reached over, grabbing what looked like a rabbit haunch off of the iron grill and tossing it over to me. I grabbed it and, feeling my stomach egging me on, started tearing into it. I stopped when I heard myself biting down on bone, the meat all but gone. The girl across from me giggled, "Haven't eaten in awhile I guess?" she asked, standing up and grabbing what looked like a water canteen. I nodded, tossing the bone off to the side, "Not since last week no." I said. She nodded, taking a drink from the canteen before she tossed it towards me. I looked up, for the first time taking in the girl across from me. She was maybe twelve years old, a bit younger than I was I guessed, and maybe a few inches shorter. She was wearing what seemed to be a white skirt with a pink shirt, a red heart emblazoned on it with a white lightning bolt going through it. She looked down, raising an eyebrow towards my own attire as I drank from the canteen. It felt good to drink water that wasn't from a stream for once.

"You from one of the shrines?" she asked, gesturing towards my clothes. I was dressed in a dark green kimono with pink highlights, the same color as my eyes. I nodded, "Yes." I said simply. She stood, walking over to me, casually letting her shotgun drag across the dirt. I nearly flinched back as I felt her hand running through my hair, following it almost to my mid-back. "Pretty long hair for a guy. I've seen girls with shorter." she said, absently blowing some of her own hair out of her eyes. I nodded, smiling slightly at her, "At the shrine, only the married men cut their hair. It's just tradition." I said, combing my fingers through some of my hair to get some twigs out of it. She nodded, sitting down next to me as she set her shotgun away from her. "Why'd you leave?" she asked.

"Bandits. They came in and… well, they thought I was a girl, so they didn't kill me like my father or the other men. They sent me off with some of the other's, but we managed to get away. I don't know if the others did but… I've just been getting as far away from here as I could." I said, frowning at the ground. I looked up again when I felt a hand on my shoulder. "Hey. How about you come with me? I'm heading for Vale… can't get much farther away than that." she said, still having that same, energetic smile. I looked at the fire, "Why do you want me to come with you? I'd just slow you down." I said, frowning. I looked over, blushing slightly as the girl hugged me, stepping behind me and laying her head on my shoulder. "You seem sane, and I'm _in_ -sane. It'll be nice having someone who _isn't_ crazy around me." she said, lightly rubbing against my cheek in a way that distinctly reminded me of a cat. I smiled, "Okay then… my name's Lie Ren. What's yours?" I asked. She just smiled,

"I'm Nora Valkyrie. I think we're gonna get along _just_ fine."

 **(a/n- back to the actual story now.)**

We walked out of Yang's building, Blake groaning as she rubbed between her eyes. "Great, she's never going to forget what you said you know." she said, glaring at me. I chuckled, holding up my hands, "Hey, she's probably heard it before. I mean with a last name like that who _hasn't_ made that joke with her." I said. Then, I heard it. It sounded like a low grumbling. I looked over, seeing Ren holding his stomach. "Jaune, it occurs to me that we didn't actually eat the food before or after you killed your sister." he said, looking over at me with that same cold, calculating stare he always had. I suddenly became acutely aware of the hollow sense in my stomach, as well as the slight pain, and realized he was right. "Yeah… well, I guess we can eat something here." I said, pointing over at the place with the word 'Restaurant' overtop of it. Blake nodded, walking over towards it. "I hope they serve fish." she muttered, just loud enough that I heard it. Ren and I looked at one another, sharing a small smile.

The three of us walked past the old school swinging doors, seeing a few tables here and there, as well as a bar towards the center. Behind that bar, was a woman I recognized. The dark skin and platinum blonde hair were a bit hard to mistake for anything else. If that weren't enough, the bandages that wrapped both of her hands and the red bead necklace sealed it. She smiled towards me, the same smile of Maru. Like father like daughter I guess. "Hello Jaune." she said, bowing slightly. I nodded, tipping my fedora towards her, "Arslan. Still training with the old man huh?" I asked, pulling out a seat and sitting down. Blake sat next to me, Ren doing the same. She nodded, "Yep. Though, ever since the fire, it's been a bit difficult for him to teach me. You know, having to pretend to be dead and all." she said, placing both hands on the bar, leaning in slightly like so many bartenders did.

I chuckled, nodding, "Yeah. As good as it has been to catch up with you guys, the three of us are here to eat." I said, looking towards Blake and Ren, both of whom nodded. She nodded, smiling towards me as she got out a notepad, "What'll you have?" she asked. I looked to the left, seeing a chalkboard with a few dishes on it. "I'll just have the noodles. Blake?" I asked, gesturing to her. Blake opened her mouth to speak, but Arslan held up a hand, "Upupup!" she said, turning around and reaching behind her, grabbing what seemed to be a large bowl of fish, handing it to her. Blake's eyes widened as she looked up, "Are you a psychic?" she asked, her mouth hanging slightly open. Arslan nodded, "Yeah. I ' _predicted_ ' that I would see your bow move, ' _predicted_ ' that you'd want fish since you're a cat faunus." she said, smirking at her. Blake looked down, her face slightly red as she just grabbed a fork, keeping her eyes at the ground. "For you?" she asked, looking at Ren. He shrugged, "Give me what Jaune's having." he said. Arslan nodded, walking away and back into what I guess was the kitchen.

A few minutes later, Blake having started on hers by now, mine and Ren's came out. She also gave the three of us some water. "There you go." she said, walking out behind the bar to deal with some other customers. Me and Ren started eating, and I smiled as I ate the warm noodles. Arslan and Maru always were good cooks. Blake, who'd finished eating about two minutes after our food came out, looked over at me. "So, how do you know Arslan anyway?" she asked, still smiling from her meal. I swallowed, "Well, her dad was the guy we met at the gate. Maru. He trained under my dad, along with me and Arslan. The two of them worked for the Arc clan… back when it used to mean something." I said, taking another bite of noodles as I frowned. Blake raised an eyebrow, but was interrupted before she could speak up. "It still does mean something. Just not something good." I heard Arslan say.

She walked out in front of me, stepping behind the bar again, picking up a glass in her right hand, cleaning it with her left. I sighed, nodding as I took a drink. "Yeah. Used to be something to be proud of… now it's something to fear." I said, grabbing onto the chopsticks in rage. I felt a hand on mine as I looked up, seeing Arslan taking the chopsticks from me, setting them back in the bowl. "I'd rather you not break our utensils, thanks." she said, smiling down at me. I sighed, picking up my hat and running a hand through my hair. "Sorry." I said. Blake looked at me oddly, "You mean, at a time, the Arc clan wasn't a criminal syndicate?" she asked. I shook my head, "No, it was always criminal. Back then though, when my dad was in charge and no my mother… well, we at least had some better goals. Places like this, the homeless in Mistral, we helped them. Honor and integrity used to be… more common." I said, shaking my head slightly.

"It was never noble. It was always a crime, but it was never so bad as it was now. Used to be people respected the Arc clan. Now… now it's just fear." Arslan said, her eyes hardening as I saw her set down the glass, likely to keep from breaking it. I nodded, "Three of the Arc kids are dead, one dishonored," I said, jerking a thumb at myself. "Eventually, the Arc clan will have to die out. I just hope I'm not alive to see it." I said, taking another bite of my noodles. Arslan looked at me oddly, "Three dead? I thought it was just Ora and Citri? Unless you're the ghost of Jaune here to haunt my bar." she said, smirking as she reached towards me. I grabbed her wrist, stopping her. "Jasmine's dead." I said simply, letting her hand go as her eyes widened. She looked around, making sure no one was listening, before she leaned in. "How?" she whispered. I reached into my jacket, pulling out my gun and nodding, "Shot." I said, putting my gun away. Arslan nodded, leaning back before she looked around, then she smiled at me. "Thanks. She was the worst one." she said.

It was quiet while me and Ren finished, laying our bowls on the bar. I looked back, my eyes narrowing as I reached for my gun. "What are you doing? No one's here." Blake said, grabbing my arm. I nodded, "Exactly. It's the lunch rush, and it's deserted. Something's wrong." I said. Arslan raised an eyebrow, grabbing out a dagger from behind her, walking towards the front door. "Come on, something's up." she said, looking towards us. I nodded, following her. I heard the pushing back of stools as Ren and Blake followed behind me. Arslan walked outside as I drew my revolver, seeing a few people gathered around one sole figure near the center of town. It was a woman, blonde hair, blue eyes. She was clutching her bleeding side, one of her eyes swollen shut. "Jaune!" she said, reaching for me. I ran over, my eyes widening as I leaned down, grabbing her hand. "Maria? Who did this to you?" I asked, looking down at her.

She reached up, laying her hand on the side of my face as she smiled. "You look… just like dad. I'm sorry… I'm sorry!" she said, crying hysterically as I saw the blood pool on the ground growing. "It's okay. Just tell me who did this." I said, leaning towards her. She sniffed, leaning back as I saw her eyes fading. "Mercury… Black." she said, leaning over to the left as I saw her eyes, glazed over with death. I stood, looking towards the entrance to the city. There, I saw him. Standing right out in the open, was the most feared assassin in Mistral. Mercury Black. He was dressed in a long, black cloak, his gray eyes showing, as well as black combat boots. He pulled down on it slightly, revealing a few strands of gray hair, as well as a small smirk. He held up a finger to his lips, likely telling me to be quiet. I didn't hesitate, drawing my gun and firing my clip at him. Though, he just held up his hands, the bullets bouncing off. I saw a flash of metal from within his cloak before he turned, walking away.

" _Who put a contract on Maria?_ " I thought, looking back down at her. "Who was that? And this for that matter?" Blake asked, gesturing to the dead woman. "That was Mercury Black, professional, ruthless, has no enemies, since they're all _dead_." I heard Yang say, seeing her walking over to us. Blake looked at me, and I just sighed, looking down at the girl, "This is… was, my sister, Maria Arc. She was the second oldest. Now there's only four of us left…" I said, standing up. Two younger sisters, one of which was a baby, two older sisters, and me. Yang walked over to me, placing a hand on my shoulder. "You three should go. We'll bury the body, don't worry. We'll tell the Arc family it was Mercury." she said, smiling slightly towards us. I nodded, grabbing Blake's hand. "Come on. We can't do anything else here. Arslan, how much do I owe you?" I asked, blue eyes meeting olive green one's. She shook her head, "It's fine. Just… leave, make yourself scarce for a while huh? We can't afford the Arc's getting angry and storming this place." she said.

I nodded, walking off towards the open gate, Blake and Ren following behind me. I felt a hand on my arm, and I saw, predictably, Blake, holding on. "I'm sorry Jaune. It must be hard… losing two sisters in one day." she said, frowning towards me. I shook my head, "It's a numb feeling really. I barely knew Maria, and killing Jasmine seemed like justice. Really… I don't know." I said, looking down at the ground, walking along the familiar dirt path, leading to the city. "Are we leaving soon?" Ren asked. I nodded, not even hesitating. "Yeah. I want out of this damn country as soon as possible." I said. Blake and Ren both nodded, "No arguments here." they both said. I nodded, turning my attention back to the road, where Mercury had disappeared, where Maria's blood had stained. I only had one thought going down the path.

" _I should really just stay in Vale._ "

 **(a/n- surprise, yet** _ **another**_ **POV change! Also, I just realized Arslan actually has more dialogue here than in the show. Not that that was difficult to top though, she had… zero lines, so… nevermind, on with it!)**

"Mercury? Your mission was a success I trust?" I heard the monotone and _incredibly_ creepy voice of my boss ask. I nodded, "Maria Arc is no more." I said simply. She smiled, the top half of her face cast in shadows as it almost always was. She laid her hands, both with perfectly manicured nails, black polish, on her desk. She turned her head towards my coworker, one I found _incredibly_ annoying. She had dark skin, red eyes, and, most noticeable, pale green, shoulder length hair. She was dressed in an olive-green dress. Why? I didn't have a clue. Maybe it was part of her cover? Maybe she just had a date later or something. "What of yours?" she asked, looking towards said pale-haired girl.

She gulped, looking down. "The mission was a failure. Neopolitan escaped." she said. My boss frowned, and it was _never_ good when that happened. "Emerald, you're one of our best agents. Why and how did she escape?" she asked. Emerald looked away, rubbing at her arm, the place of a large bruise, likely from her mission. "A sniper fired on my hijacked car. It blew out the tires and caused a wreck. I was knocked unconscious, and I came too a few hours later. Neopolitan is currently under the protection of the sugar sloths." she said. I couldn't help but snicker, holding up a hand to my mouth to try and hide it. My boss looked over at me, "What's so funny Mercury?" she asked. I stood back up straight, hands to my sides. "Sorry, it's just that name…" I said, unable to keep from smiling. My boss smiled as well, "I have to admit, it _is_ quite humorous." she said.

"Regardless, did you catch a glimpse of this sniper?" my boss ask. Emerald shook her head, "No. I'm sorry Cinder. I have no clue who it could have been." she said, looking at the floor. I chuckled, "You're such an amatuer." I said. Cinder looked at me, likely raising an eyebrow, "What do you mean Mercury?" she asked. I smirked, leaning back against the wall, "A sniper fires on a car going at _least_ sixty miles per hour, enough to make it crash and still leave both occupants alive? How many bullets?" I asked, looking towards Emerald. She glared at me for a moment, then looked back at Cinder. "Two." she said simply. Cinder motioned towards me, "Go on Mercury, who is it?" she asked. I kept my smirk as I walked closer, "There are only a handful of snipers with that kind of skill. Two of them are dead, one's in Menagerie, one's in prison, which leaves one." I said, holding up one finger.

Emerald's eyes widened, "You mean _she_ fired on me!?" she asked, her voice cracking with fear. I nodded, "Damn right. The Bloody Rose has deemed us her enemies." I said. I saw a nearly unnoticeable shiver go up Cinder's arms, even _she_ was afraid of the psychopath. Cinder nodded, "Well… there's very little we can do then. They must have Neopolitan under their protection." she said. I shook my head, leaning on her desk. Only me and Emerald could get away with doing that. "No, otherwise we wouldn't be talking, we'd be at Emerald's funeral. No, I think she's telling us to back off that detective." I said, an image of the man firing six bullets at me, not one hitting, flashing through my mind. Cinder leaned in, exposing her bright amber eyes to the world for once, "Why would they do _that_? What's the point?" she asked. I smirked, stepping back, "Simple. That detective is looking for Yang Xiao Long, a runaway from the Rose family. The Bloody Rose works for the Rose family, I've got no doubt that they're hoping the detective will lead them to Yang." I said.

Cinder nodded, leaning back, "You make a point Mercury. How would you suggest we proceed?" she asked. Me and Emerald were the only one's she would ask for advice, perks of being the right and left hand man of a warlord respectively. "We have to kill the Valkyrie." I said simply, as if I were discussing the weather. Emerald walked over, placing a hand on my shoulder, "Mercury, you _know_ we can't do that. She'd kill us in a split second. She's basically invincible." she said. I shook my head, turning around and walking to the door, turning back at the last second. "You want to kill the Valkyrie? You clip her wings." I said, reaching into my cloak and pulling out a small knife. Cinder seemed intrigue, standing up and leaning in closer. "Elaborate." she said, her eyes boring holes into me. I smirked, "She's got one thing that makes her invincible. One thing that keeps her above the rest of us. Destroy it, she becomes vulnerable. I hadn't wanted to do it at first since he didn't have a contract on him, _and_ he works with that damn detective." I said. Cinder's eyes widened, "Are you saying…" she trailed off. I nodded,

"Lie Ren. Kill him, the Valkyrie falls."


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter eleven: Nightmares

 **(a/n- a bit more of a backstory chapter than anything. Also, implied murder… wait, there was** _ **real**_ **murder in the last one why is implied worse? Anyway, enjoy this chapter (that is** _ **filled**_ **with POV changes might I add)**

"So, what's the deal with Mercury Black anyway?" I heard Blake ask. After we'd left, it had taken us some time to get back to the hotel, all of us ready for bed at that point. We were in mine and Ren's room, me leaning back on my bed as Blake sat across from me, in one of the chairs nearby. "Mercury Black is the most feared assassin in Mistral. He's probably the only one that could give Ruby a run for her money." I said. Blake's eyes widened as I saw a shiver run up her spine. No doubt she thought Ruby was unmatched in her skill, sadism, and outright terrifying presence. "What kind of assassin uses his real name anyway?" Ren asked, looking over at me as he tossed his shirt off to the side, grabbing out his kimono from the bottom drawer. Apparently, he didn't care all that much that Blake was still in the room.

"He probably doesn't. It's more a title." I said. Blake raised an eyebrow, "Wait, how is 'Mercury Black' a title?" she asked. I smiled, taking my hat off and setting it on the nightstand. I took my coat off as I answered her. "Simple. The Black part of his name came from where he always wears that long black cloak. The Mercury part comes from how he kills his targets." I said. Ren spoke next, walking over to his bed as he pulled his pants off, pulling his kimono on over his underwear. "How he kills?" he asked. I nodded, "Yeah. Seems every great murderer has their signature. The Bloody Rose, or, Ruby, leaves rose petals wherever she kills someone. The Fallen always burns the body, and Mercury always uses mercury tipped bullets. The targets always run for awhile before they die from mercury poisoning." I said. Again, a match for Ruby in sadism. Which was _incredibly_ hard to do sometimes.

Blake nodded, "So… this guy had some kind of vendetta against your sister?" she asked. I shook my head, opening the drawer on the nightstand and laying Crocea Mors inside. "No, he had a contract on her." I said. Blake raised an eyebrow, "So he's like you? A hitman." there was a beat of silence as I glared at her. "USED TO BE! Uh, how you _used_ to be, I mean." she said, bullets of sweat forming along her forehead. I looked down, "Yeah, he is. He'll take a contract on almost anyone. He's not a mass murderer, though it _is_ probably insane." I said. I reached out my arms, letting out a yawn as I rubbed at my eyes. "I think it's about time we head to sleep. We'll head back tomorrow night." I said. Blake opened her mouth for a second, then she nodded. "Okay then… see you both in the morning." she said, walking towards the door. She tried to be sneaky about it, and she was to an extent, but I saw her grab Ren's key before she walked off.

Of course, Ren was none the wiser. "You heading to bed Jaune?" Ren asked, already pulling the covers up over him. I nodded, still looking towards the door. "Yeah… in a minute." I said. I could hear the smirk in Ren's voice as he spoke, "Thinking what Blake looks like when she's changing?" he asked. I felt my face flush as I stood, walking over and turning off the light. "No… nothing important." I said. Ren didn't miss a beat, "What, imagining a girl naked _isn't_ important?" he asked. I felt my face flush brighter, thank god he couldn't see in the dark, before I grabbed my sleep pants from the top drawer. I didn't answer him as I undressed, standing in my underwear for a moment as I froze, feeling my hand on my scar. " _All this time… still hurts huh?_ " I thought as I pulled on my sleep pants, walking back over to the bed and laying down. I felt the blanket's warmth wrap around me as I tried to ignore the painful memory. "Goodnight Ren." I said. "Still thinking about Blake?" " _Goodnight_." I said, letting my annoyance slip into my voice before I shut my eyes, slowly drifting off to sleep.

 **(a/n- announcing POV change since, apparently, asterisks don't show up on the mobile version (as of my last check at least… have they fixed that yet?)**

" _Blakey~"_ I held my breath, leaning against the lower wall as I tried to stay hidden. " _Please don't see me please don't see me please don't see me…_ " I thought as I heard the scraping of metal across the concrete. I looked down, seeing the blood staining my black gown, feeling the pain in my side. I could smell it, the scent of blood, iron, and oil. All of them were in the air. There was one more too, though it was more subtle. Gunpowder. " _I'll find you eventually, just come on home~ I promise I'll make it quick~_ " I heard the voice say as I tried to slow my heart. I was _terrified_ that he would find me. "Mama!" I heard a voice say. I turned, my eyes widening in fear as I saw her. She was so small, only up to my knee. She had bright red hair, beautiful amber eyes like mine, and a long, black tail behind her. She was wearing those little pajamas I got her for her birthday, the last one. "RUN SWEETIE! RUN!" I yelled, rushing towards her.

I felt myself jerked backwards, and when I looked back, I saw it. Chains. Four wrapped around my arms and legs, one around my neck in a collar. I looked over, my eyes widening as I saw _him_ walking forwards. The black trench coat, the red katana, the smoking revolver in his left hand. I tried to lunge towards him, try and stop him, to stop it from happening, what I _knew_ was going to happen. "ADAM! NO! PLEASE!" I yelled, feeling the hot tears of frustration running down my face. He looked back, his eyes eternally hidden behind his mask, as he smirked at me. His teeth were needle points, all of them bloody. " _Why shouldn't I? I'll do what I please~ Not like you can stop me~_ " he said, his voice… god his voice. "Please! Please Adam I'm _begging_ you! I'll do whatever you want! I'll never leave! PLEASE! DON'T HURT HER!" I yelled, trying to reach out towards him. I felt my eyes widen as I saw her, my daughter, running towards me, her eyes widening in concern. "Mama! Papa!" she yelled.

Those were the last words she ever said to me.

I felt it before I heard it, the gunshot. It was like a magic trick. One second, my baby was running towards me, her arms outstretched, the next… she was just gone, in an explosion of blood. I felt myself sinking to my knees, I was numb. Even when I saw Adam walk over to her, my baby, still moving. I didn't do a thing. Even when I saw him draw his sword, when I saw him hold it up, I couldn't do anything. I tried to shout, to yell, to run. I tried to put myself between the blade, between the blade and my baby… but I couldn't do anything but watch. It was only after, when I saw him draw his blade, even more red, carrying something in his hand, that I found my will again. I heard myself crying, looking down at the ground, my hands curling into fists. Even then, I didn't feel in control, like I was just watching some sick, twisted movie. I felt a hand on my chin, pulling me up. " _This is because of you Blake, you abandoned us. You betrayed us. You paid in blood… just not your own._ " he said, dropping what was in his hand. I felt him push me back, the chains keeping me in place. I saw the object move over to me, slowly rolling, leaking blood in it's wake. I saw the amber eyes gaze at me, the mouth moving. " _Why mama?_ " I heard. Then… then I found my voice.

"NIIIIIIIIIX!"

"GAHH!" I yelled, shooting bolt upright. I looked around, my eyes wide and afraid as I swung my head left and right. When I saw only the dark interior of my hotel room in mistral, I looked down, feeling along my body for wounds, anything. Nothing. I was in my black yukata, my book was on the bed, and two pillows were stacked behind me. The lamp next to me on the table, the reading light, was still on. My book was even still open to the page I'd left it. I reached over, laying my bookmark on the page and shutting the book. I looked at the cover, " _Ninjas of love… same as normal._ " I thought, casually tossing the book off to the left. " _Mama!_ " I heard. I looked around, a slight hope alight in my chest. When I didn't see her, I felt my heart sink. I reached around my neck, my throat tightening as I pulled, grabbing at the nearly invisible chain of my locket. I pulled it out over my hair, moving it back off of me so I could see better. I looked down, popping it open.

Inside on the left was a picture of Adam, me, and my little girl. He was dressed like always, except without the mask. Even then, with the color of the photo, I couldn't tell what color his eyes were. I was dressed in the black one he liked, and my baby was dressed in what looked like a little sunday bonnet. She was always so cute, especially with her tail coiling around my leg. On the right I saw it, the engraving. " _In loving memory._ " I heard the dripping and saw it before I realized that I was crying. I held a hand up, taking a shaky breath. "Nix…" I whimpered, my hands shaking. Suddenly, I heard a knock on the door. "Blake?" I heard. Jaune. It was Jaune. I stood, walking over to the door and opening it. I felt my face flush slightly as I looked down, seeing him in sleep pants, but sans a shirt. He looked down, his eyes flashing with concern. "Something wrong? I heard someone screaming." he said. I opened my mouth to respond, but then shook my head. "It's… it's nothing." I said, looking down at my locket.

He looked down too, softly grabbing my shaky hand. "Family?" he asked, looking up at me. I saw his eyes soften, "Yeah… they were." I said, fighting down the tears I could feel rising to the surface. He walked inside, shutting the door behind him before he placed a consoling hand on my shoulder. "Do you… need to talk about it?" he asked, smiling slightly. I looked away, walking back and sitting down on my bed. I looked down, "No… there's nothing left to talk about… Not…" I felt my vision getting blurry as I wiped away at my tears, looking down at my locket. I felt the springs shift as I saw Jaune's hand lay itself over mine. "You miss them, don't you?" he asked. I just nodded, feeling a wave of grief wash over me. "Nix… my little baby… I just wish… I just wish I could wrap my arms around her… one more time." I felt myself shaking as I held up a hand, feeling myself sobbing. I felt two arms around me as I moved over slightly, my hand dropping the locket. I looked up, seeing Jaune hugging me to him. "It's okay… I won't pretend to know what it's like… to lose a child… but I know it hurts to lose family." he said.

I couldn't take it anymore. I lunged, wrapping my arms around his neck as I buried my face in his shoulder, wailing loud enough that Ren could probably hear it. "NIX! NIIIX…" I yelled between sobs, just holding onto Jaune. So much for being strong. Still… it felt nice, to be weak for a change. To just let go… and grief for my daughter. It was ten minutes later, when I'd gone from outright wailing to just a few sniffles here and there, when Jaune pulled me back, looking down at me with sparkling eyes… " _Wait, he was crying too?_ " I thought. Sure enough, I saw them. Dried tear trails, running down his face. He'd been crying with me. "Feel better?" he asked, smiling slightly. I wiped at my eyes, smiling towards him. "Yeah… yeah. I think… I think I needed that." I said, leaning against his shoulder as I grabbed the locket, frowning as I saw my daughter again. "Why were you crying?" I asked, looking up at Jaune from my point on his shoulder.

He smiled down at me, "I don't know. Seeing you crying over your daughter… it made me want to cry with you." he said, keeping his arm wrapped around my shoulder. I didn't move it, I couldn't say I minded. I reached down, laying my locket on the nightstand. "Jaune… why? Why did you care about me in the first place?" I asked. I'd been wondering it for awhile now, the reason he helped. He saved me, but he could've just left after he got his information. Why didn't he? He raised an eyebrow, about what I expected, "Sorry, what?" he asked. I sighed, "I mean, why did you help me? You took me in, gave me a place to hide when my own was taken… you didn't know I could help your case, so why? How did it benefit you?" I asked. He just smiled, that same, goofy, innocent smile he always seemed to have. "It didn't. You needed a place, and I wanted to help. I didn't have to get anything out of it." he said.

I looked at him blankly for a second before I smiled, leaning against his shoulder again. "Your such a dork." I said, smiling up at him. He chuckled before he pulled me closer, "Right back at you bookworm." he said. We stayed like that for awhile, just sitting in the near silence, enjoying each other's warmth… then he broke the silence. "I uh… I better get back to my room. Head to sleep." he said, trying to stand. I felt my instincts take hold as he stood, and I grabbed his hand. "No… please, stay." I said, looking up at him. I saw his face tinge pink as he spoke, "Uh, why might I ask?" he said. I stood, grabbing his arm as I looked up at him, "I… I'm afraid okay. That when I fall asleep I'll see… I'll see…" I couldn't say it, I felt my eyes tearing up again. I squeaked as I felt him pull me towards him, hugging me. I looked up, his eyes meeting mine. "It's okay. If you want me too… I'll stay." he said, smiling at me. This one was more caring, sincere, the way he looked when people were hurting, and needed a shoulder to cry on. He was really good at that.

I nodded, stepping out of his grip and laying in the bed. He walked around, sitting on the other side as I felt my face burn bright red. "By the way Jaune? How did you hear me? Did Ren?" I asked. I looked over, seeing him sitting on the other bed in the room. He shook his head, "No… you weren't the only one that had a nightmare." he said as he leaned back, laying down. I frowned, "Are you going to stay there?" I asked. He shrugged, "Why? Want me over there?" he asked. I looked at him, but I saw no joking in his eyes. I saw no lust, no desire… nothing but concern and genuine empathy. He really didn't care about sleeping with me, he just… he wanted to comfort me. "I can't believe I'm saying this but… get in bed with me." I said. I saw his face burn as he stood, slipping beneath the covers as I turned away, turning out the light. I really didn't need it to see anyway.

I heard the shifting of bed sheets before I turned, amber eyes meeting blue one's again as I felt my own face burn. Good thing he couldn't see in the dark. I looked down, blushing bright enough I was almost _sure_ he would see it, as I moved my hand, lightly tapping his scar. I felt him shiver, but he didn't move. "Are you cold Blake?" he asked. I met his eyes again, his eyes still showing genuine concern, even this close to me. "No, why?" I asked, confused. It was rather warm in here. He reached down, grabbing my hand in his much warmer one. "Since your hands are _freezing_." he said. I looked down, seeing our hands entwined again, as I realized just how much larger his hand was, nearly able to swallow mine up. "It's kind of weird seeing you in the dark." he said. I looked at him oddly, "Why?" I asked.

He moved his hand slightly, feeling around a bit since he probably couldn't see. "It's pitch black in here, but I can still see your eyes. It's like they're glowing." he said. I grabbed his hand and moved it between us, grabbing both of his in mine. "Out of curiosity, and don't you _dare_ make a 'curiosity killed the cat joke'... what was your nightmare about?" I asked. He smiled at me, then he frowned, his eyes looking down to where our hands met. "It was about the night I got the scar. When I killed Citri. It was the same as always, not the first time I've had it." he said, looking away. I moved his hands, wrapping them around my waist as I pulled myself closer. My face felt like the sun as I felt his skin against mine. Why was this so embarrassing?! It's not like he's the _first_ guy I've slept with, I mean, I _did_ have Nix. "Thanks Blake but… it's just a numb feeling now." he said, smiling down towards me.

I smiled right back, leaning against his chest as I heard it, his heartbeat. It was thumping quickly, likely nervous at being this close to me. "Jaune… are you a virgin?" I asked. I heard his heart get ten times faster. "Uh, what?!" he asked, his voice cracking. I giggled, "I just meant you seem really nervous. Your heart's beating a mile a minute." I said, smiling up at him. He gulped, looking away from my likely glowing eyes. "Well who wouldn't be nervous, having a pretty girl sleeping next to them." he said, his heart going faster and face burning brighter as he likely realized what he said. I smiled, wrapping my arms around his back as I felt him wrap his around mine. "Jaune." I said. "Yeah Blake?" he replied, looking down at me. I leaned up, letting my lips brush against his, just a bit, before I pulled back, smiling. "Thank you." I said, leaning down and rubbing my head against his chest. I could feel his heart rate skyrocketing despite his calm voice. "Don't mention it. Let's try and get some sleep." he said. I nodded, letting my eyes slip shut as I felt his warmth surrounding me. " _Don't have to tell me twice."_

 **(a/n- in case the asterisks don't show, this is another POV change.)**

I groggily opened my eyes, my face twisting in confusion as I saw, rather than my hat, a book, titled 'Ninjas of love'. " _Oh, right._ " I thought as I looked down, feeling last night's blush creeping back up as I saw Blake, rubbing up against my chest with a small smile. " _Hard to believe she was crying up a storm just last night… that she's been through so much._ " I thought with a frown. No one should have to go through that. The way she spoke, the way she held the locket, it was easy to tell. She'd lost her daughter to her husband, no woman, or man for that matter, should have to go through that. With that thought in mind, I wrapped my arms around her, just a little tighter, as if I were trying to squeeze all the bad memories out of her. I knew it wouldn't work, but still… didn't hurt to try.

I don't know how long I saw there, just laying on the pillow, holding Blake to me as tightly as possible without crushing her, but eventually, it had to end. I saw Blake's eyes fluttering, looking up at me in the dim light. I looked back, " _Huh, I guess her room does have a window._ " I thought, having not realized that before. Of course, I always stayed in the one next door, not this one. I looked down, smiling slightly, "Any nightmares?" I asked. She shook her head, "No… I think you scared them off." she said, smiling up at me as I felt her chin set on my chest. I looked up, hearing the movements of people outside. "Guess we have to get up huh?" I asked, looking back down at her. She groaned, nuzzling against my chest with a small smile, "Can't we just stay in bed? Pretend it's still nighttime?" she asked. I chuckled, "I wish we could Blake." I said. While we were in here, we could pretend the problems didn't exist, we could pretend everything was right with the world for once. We could just stay here, in each other's arms, and wait out our lives.

Of course, it was never that easy.

She sighed, moving her arms back as I did the same. "Yeah, give me a second." she said. I just laid down, silent, as I watched her sit up, her back facing away from me. I saw her stretch out a bit, yawning as I saw the strands of daylight hitting her, making her look almost like a god in the lighting. She stood, looking back at me before she smiled, "Well don't be a hypocrite, you have to get up too!" she said, grabbing my arm. I sighed, standing up on the other side before I patted down my pants, smoothing them out a bit. "Alright. Give me Ren's key you took from last night." I said, smiling when I saw her ears go rigid, her eyes widening. Then she smiled, "Nothing gets past you huh?" she said, opening the drawer of the nightstand and pulling out the key, tossing it to me. I grabbed it, nodding towards her. "Maybe Ren, but not me, no." I said.

I walked to the door as Blake followed. She stopped at the bathroom door, walking inside as I walked outside… the room. I looked around, seeing no one walking around the halls as I opened the door to my room, using the key Blake gave me. When I opened the door, I noticed that, thankfully, Ren was still asleep. " _Still sleeping off those two whiskey's huh?_ " I thought. While Ren could hold his liquor, in the morning, it seemed that ability just went out the window. He'd be sleeping till six in the morning… two days after drinking, if I didn't wake him up. I walked over to the dresser, setting down his key before I turned on the light, shutting the door behind me. "Uhhh." I heard Ren say, the lump that was him on the bed moving around slightly. I smirked towards him, "Rise and shine sleeping not-so-beauty." I said, leaning down and grabbing my clothes for the day… which was really just a pair of pants and a shirt, since I wore the same trenchcoat. " _I need to wash that thing when we get home._ " I thought as I walked into the bathroom, preparing to take a shower.

When I got out, I saw Ren combing through his hair, pulling it back into a ponytail like he always did. He glared at me, "It's seven in the morning, why are you such an early bird?" he asked. I shrugged, "Hey, hitmen have to get up whenever to catch a target. Course, you'd know about that, wouldn't you serial sleeper?" I said, smirking slightly. He sighed, "For the last time, I was high off my ass when that happened. You found me, you should know." he said. I shrugged, "Eh, whatever. Let's just get ready, get Blake, and see what we can do before we leave tonight." I said. I pulled on my trench coat when, at that exact moment, I heard a knock on the door.

"Who's knocking on our door this early?" Ren asked, looking at it oddly. I shrugged, walking over and pulling the door open. I felt my face burn slightly as I saw Blake, casually holding a towel to cover her body, another around her hair, in her left hand was both the towel and the key to her room. The other? A card of lien. "You left this in my room last night." she said, she handed me the card then looked over at Ren, then at me, then back to Ren. Then… she slowly backed away, back towards her own room. I shut the door and turned, seeing Ren looking predictably smug. "I'm never gonna hear the end of this am I?" I asked. He smirked,

"Nope."


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter twelve: It's a trap!

 **(a/n- Gonna have another little omake here since no one objected to the last one. These are just little bits of backstory that don't really fit with the main story… but I still want to go over. Anyway, here it is.)**

 **(a/n- also anyone that watched John Wick Chapter two might recognize a part of this.)**

 _Omake: The curious case of Velvet Scarlatina (I honestly don't think that reference works that well here… oh well, I just wanted to use it. This is related to 'The Velvet Conversation' Jaune brought up in chapter eight… and possibly a future omake? Anyway it's about two years before the events of chapter one)_

"Uhh… Velvet?" I asked, looking over at my rabbit faunus secretary. I was in my room upstairs, and the fact she was even there already struck me as odd. She suddenly stood upright, her ears going rigid as she slowly turned around. She was dressed differently too, instead of the brown sweatshirt and dark grey trousers I was used to… it was a brown dress. It hugged her figure and, don't get the wrong idea, it suited her just fine… but it still kind of weirded me out. I saw a line of sweat on her forehead as she spoke, she was oozing nervous energy out of every pore. "H-H-Hello Jaune! W-What are y-y-y-you doing here?" she asked, her entire body shaking slightly. I raised an eyebrow, leaning back against the doorframe as I kept the door open with my foot.

"Umm, I _live_ here? In this room in particular actually. What're you doing up here? Did you need something?" I asked, raising an eyebrow at her. I saw her face flush as she looked down, muttering something I couldn't quite hear. "Sorry, what?" I asked, walking closer as I heard the door shut. I heard her gulp as she looked up, walking over to me. "Umm… I d-d-don't know how t-t-to say this… I'm w-w-worried you'll g-g-get mad at me if I m-m-mess it up…" she said, looking down. I honestly thought she was about to cry. I held up my hands, smiling at her, "Velvet, you aren't going to make me angry. Just… just say what you need to." I said, taking a breath to calm myself slightly. Something about this was setting off my 'sixth sense'. I almost felt threatened… which was weird, since the shorter rabbit faunus was the one causing it.

She walked over to me, nearly pressing against me as I pressed back into the door. I felt a line of sweat break out across my own forehead as I spoke, "Umm, Velvet? You're a… a little close there." I said. I grabbed at my collar, lightly pulling on it, "Phew, is it hot in here?" I asked, giving her what was probably the world's most unconvincing and awkward smile. I felt her lean her forehead against my chest, "Jaune… h-how do you f-f-feel about me?" she asked, looking up at me with teary eyes. Yes… she looked like she was seriously about to _cry_.

"Velvet what's going-"

"ANSWER THE QUESTION!"

I had to force myself not to jump back as Velvet reached her hands up, holding them over her mouth before she jumped back, landing on my bed and shaking slightly. "I'M SORRY I'M SORRY I'M SORRY!" she nearly yelled, muffled by her hands. I blinked twice, shaking my head slightly to try and get over the shock of what just happened before I walked over, gingerly sitting down on the bed, closer to the pillow, and reached out a hand. I felt her flinch back and look up, her eyes teary as she gazed at me. "It's okay… and I think you're a great person Velvet. You're sweet, loving, probably the kindest person I've _ever_ met, and you're a pleasure to have around. But… out of curiousity… why?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I mean, I'd be fine telling my older friend what she was good at but, well, it seemed out of character for her to ask that. If I even _tried_ to compliment her in the past she'd just start blushing, pull up her sweater and hide in it for awhile. Usually she'd also curl up into a fetal position.

"I… I... " she took a breath, letting it out as I saw her eyes take on a more steely quality, one of someone that was focusing intently on what they were about to do. "Just go for it." she muttered, seemingly talking to herself as she looked over at me. At this point, her face was a blushing mess, and I was equal parts concerned and freaked out of my mind. "Umm… Velvet?" I asked, leaning back slightly. I'd never seen her act like this… and it was _really_ weirding me out. She didn't answer, but instead took a breath… before she lunged right at me. I didn't know what happened, I just couldn't process it. One second she was there, the next I saw and felt her slam her lips against mine… it actually kinda hurt. " _What- I-... how? Huh?!"_ I thought. I just… I just couldn't even think. What the heck was I supposed to do?! Should I shove her off? Wrap my arms around her? I didn't _know_! So, naturally, I did what I always do when I have no clue how to react to a situation.

Nothing.

I just sat there and waited, my eyes wide and my face brighter red than hers as I just let my hands stay there, frozen in place near her sides. It felt like an eternity before I felt her move her own face back, keeping her eyes shut for a few seconds. I figured she was waiting for a response. When she opened her eyes, all I could do was sit there, my mouth slightly open in shock, my mind not even _beginning_ to process what the hell had just happened. "Uwaaaaawhat?" I said, blinking rapidly as I just tried to make some kind of noise, _something_ other than just sitting there and staring at her. Velvet was about the same, suddenly freezing up as well, her eyes flicking over me as her face slowly brightened, redder and redder.

It felt like hours, though it was probably more like five minutes, when I finally found my voice again. "Umm, what? What just… I don't even know what just happened…" I said as I stared, mouth agape, at the rabbit faunus that had just stolen my first kiss. She looked away, covering her face with her hands as I saw her leaning down, her ears drooping slightly. "I… I RUINED EVERYTHING AGAIN!" she yelled, dashing out the door. I just sat there, watching the door slam shut behind her as I just tried to make a coherent sentence, fumbling like the idiot I felt like… and probably was come to think of it. " _Okay… do what you always do in irrational situations Jaune… look at the facts._ " I thought. It helped on cases, maybe it would help now. When confronted with crazy situations, order and list the facts to come up with a plan. " _Okay, so_

 _1\. The work day just ended and I'd closed up shop_

 _2\. I'd just got done talking with Ren_

 _3\. Velvet was in my room in a form fitting brown dress_

 _4\. Velvet seemed really nervous_

 _5\. Velvet kissed me_

 _6\. She ran out and screamed she ruined everything_

7\. … _that's all I got._

I stood up, feeling at least a _little_ more calm about what just happened, and let my hand absently trail towards my lips. " _Didn't realize Velvet wore lipstick._ " I thought, considering the fact my fingers came away slightly red. Not enough to be obvious but, enough that it was there. I opened the door, looking around to see everything the way it normally was, other than one door was open down the hall. I slowly walked towards it, stepping past the creakier floorboards as to try and not startle my faunus secretary. When I got to the door, I looked in, frowning at what I saw. Velvet was sitting in the corner of the room, farthest from the bed. She was curled into a ball, her ears curled up and her arms on her legs. She'd buried her head into her arms, her back arched against the wall. She was even rocking slowly back and forth. I could just barely hear her muttering the word 'Stupid' over and over again.

"Velvet?"

"I'M SORRY!"

She yelled, looking up towards me, her eyes still tightly shut. I was about to speak when she buried her head back into her arms, rocking a bit faster. I walked over towards her, getting on one knee and reaching out a hand. I placed one on her shoulder as she darted her head up, her nose twitching in a way that reminded me _far_ too much like an actual rabbit. "Velvet… just calm down." I said. She sniffed, wiping away at her eyes as I saw some of her eyeliner running. She tried to speak for a second, but all I heard was faint whimpering. "Velvet, it's okay." I said. That seemed to set her off.

"NO IT'S NOT! IRUINEDEVERYTHINGAGAINANDNOWYOU'LLHATEMEANDLEAVEMEANDTON-TONALONEANDNOWOHGODHOWCOULDIBESOSTUPID!"

"Woah woah! It's okay… none of that's going to happen." I said gently, placing a consoling hand on her other shoulder as she sobbed into her hands. After a few minutes of sobbing she finally seemed to gain her composure enough that she could speak. She looked up, streaks of black eyeliner down her face. "It's not?" she asked, her voice high and cracking slightly. I frowned as I leaned in, wrapping my arms around her. I couldn't stand seeing her suffer, or anyone hurting her. I mean, it was like kicking a puppy, who _does_ that? (There's Cardin I guess) "No… no I'm not going to abandon you and Ton-ton, you haven't ruined _anything_. I just… well, I'd kind of like to know _why_ you just… well, stole my first kiss?" I asked, smiling slightly awkwardly. Velvet's eyes widened as I said that.

"W-Wait, that… oh I'm sorry I, I didn't know…" she said, looking back down as I saw her eyes tearing up slightly. I raised an eyebrow, somewhat confused. "There's no need to be, I told you, it's fine." I said, still trying to console the saddened rabbit. She shook her head, her gaze suddenly having a ferocity I hadn't seen before… at least, not in her. "Of _course_ there's a need Jaune! Your first kiss is special! It's important… and I just stole yours…" she said, looking down as I saw her assumingly trying to scrunch into a tighter ball. I sighed, placing my hands on her shoulders as I moved in front of her. I tilted her head up with my left hand, brown eyes meeting blue one's as I tried to calm her down… at least a _little_. I wasn't used to panicked Velvet.

"Velvet it's-"

"Jaune… please."

She held up a hand, trying to get me to stop… oddly. I nodded, gesturing for her to go on with my hand. I sat back on my heels as Velvet spoke. "Even if it's no big deal to you… it's a big deal to _me_ okay? Let me pay you back." she said, her face tinted slightly red. I raised an eyebrow, leaning back a bit more as I felt the sudden need to back away from her. "Umm, how?" I asked. She sighed, standing up as she held out a hand towards me. I took it, using her hand and the nearby nightstand to hoist myself back to where I was standing. I stepped back as she reached her hands behind her back. I felt my face burn bright red as I kept my eyes on her face, seeing the dress drop off of her shoulders. Her face was as red as mine as she spoke, "You can do whatever you want. Anything." she said, shutting her eyes as I hazarded a look down. Thankfully at _least_ she was wearing underwear, I probably couldn't handle it if she wasn't. She was wearing brown underwear and, oddly, fishnet stockings. I smiled slightly as I reached into my trenchcoat, "Just remember you said anything." I said, seeing her face flush brighter.

"Huh?"

Velvet opened her left eye, unable to open her right on account of the handkerchief pressed against it. I wiped away at the eyeliner beneath her eyes as she involuntarily shut them. I pulled back, smiling at her confused expression. "What? I'd rather not have your eyeliner stain your face." I said, shutting my eyes as I let out a small chuckle. When I opened them again, I saw Velvet's face, while still bright red, was now more confused than anything. "Wait… I'm in my underwear, I told you… you could do anything to me… and you wiped my eyes?" she asked, blinking twice in what I guessed was disbelief. I shrugged, unable to help the smile on my face. "What? You said anything. Now we're even." I said. Velvet just stood there, about as flabbergasted as I was when she kissed me a few minutes ago, doing nothing but looking at me.

"Put your dress back on Velvet… seriously this is getting awkward." I said, looking away from her. I heard a small squeak from her as I saw her reach down, pulling her dress up around her, zipping it behind her. When she was done, I looked back at her, smiling slightly. She was still confused, "That was it? You… you don't want to…" she gestured towards the bed next to me. I smirked as I grabbed around her waist, her letting out a squeak as she was nearly flung to the bed. I kicked the door shut, smirking towards her. "Well, you brought it up. Let me show you how an Arc does it~" I said, leaning down. I saw her shut her eyes, looking away from me from me as she scrunched them shut. Even so, her voice sounded so fragile and innocent. "Please, be gentle." she said.

"BAHAHAHAHAHNO! STOP! BAHAHAH!"

Velvet was bucking around on the bed as I moved my hands along her stomach, her laughing up a storm. I stopped after a minute, letting her catch her breath for a moment, her face still set in a wide smile. "I… I didn't mean for… Ahaha." Velvet said, smiling towards me. I returned it, sitting down on the bed as she just laid there, still trying to catch her breath. "I didn't realize you were that ticklish." (yeah, he was tickling her… the _hell_ were you thinking?!) I said, still smirking towards her. Her face tinged a bit brighter as she looked away, still smiling towards the wall as she moved her hands off her stomach, laying them at her sides. "That's… not what I had in mind but, this works for you huh?" she asked, smiling over at me.

I smiled right back, leaning over and scratching behind her right ear, the spot I knew she liked from years of experience. The effect was instant, her right leg moving up and kicking against the metal bar of the bed as her eyes shut, her face set in quiet pleasure from simply being pet. "Yeah, it's fine. I have to ask though… why? Why did you… you know." I said, looking away as my face tinged pink. She looked away, sitting up next to me and leaning on my shoulder slightly, still trying to catch her breath from both the petting and the tickling. "Ren said you liked me and… well, I thought I should give you a chance." she said, looking down. I felt my face heat up, for a _very_ different reason this time. "Oh that little-!"

I shot up, moving open the door as I looked out towards the stairs, seeing the man of the hour. He was smirking towards me, leaning back against the door to the staircase. "So… how's it going with Velvet? Give her a good time?" he asked, his eyes sparkling with mischief. I growled towards him as Velvet stepped out of the room, her eyes widening when she saw Ren. "You were… completely lying when you said Jaune liked me didn't you?" Velvet asked, her ears drooping slightly as she leaned down. Ren shrugged, smirking towards me as he held his hand out. "Hey, I figured Jaune here liked you, so I thought I'd give him the proper push he needed." he said. I glared at him, not speaking as I walked over to him. He looked at me oddly, dropping his smirk for his normal expression. "What? Didn't get-"

CRASH!

I huffed out a few breaths as I looked down, seeing Ren laying in the floor, a large hole in the door next to him about where his face would be. "I'm only saying this once. Never. Do this. Again." I said, glaring down at him. He held up his left hand, his thumb up. "Got it…" he muttered before he fell, groaning into the carpet. I turned, walking back towards my own room. When I was about halfway to my room, I turned back to Velvet, seeing her standing in the hall, just looking at Ren in shock. "Velvet, make a note to call a carpenter in the morning… we're gonna need a new door." I said, gesturing to the one that currently may have had some of Ren's teeth in it. She looked to Ren, then me, then Ren, then me again. Then, she giggled, holding a hand up to her mouth.

"I'll get right on it."

 **(a/n- omake's over… and very long… I'm long winded, what can I say?)**

"So did you-"

"For the last time _no_."

I said, rubbing between my eyes as Blake trailed behind me and Ren, her face likely a blushing mess. Ren had been asking almost the same questions the entire time we were walking around the city. " _So did you have sex with Blake?_ " was the main one, the one he just asked as well. Another one, " _Was she purring all night long?_ " he would ask just as much. Every time I looked over my shoulder I would see Blake standing a few feet behind us, her face bright red as she would absently look at the stores around us. Mine wasn't the same way, being used to dealing with Ren and his smart mouth at this point, but my face _did_ feel a bit warmer than normal. It was more annoying than anything for me.

I decided to tune out Ren's next question, which was likely some cat-related pussy pun. That was the third question he'd been asking almost on loop. I just looked around, absently wondering what place to go in next. I was already carrying a bag in one hand, Ren carrying a similar one in his as well. He was shopping for a souvenir for Nora, and I was doing the same for Velvet, Ton-Ton and Neo. Velvet since she didn't get to travel a lot, Neo since… well I figured she might like something from Mistral. Ton-Ton was an obvious reason, she'd given me that adorable kicked puppy look for weeks the last time I'd forgotten to get her something from Atlas. On the bright side, she was pretty easy to buy for. Some candy, a new doll or stuffed animal she didn't already have, things like that. Conveniently, I just passed a candy shop… and a toy store.

I walked into the toy store, Ren raising an eyebrow as he followed me. "Why are we in here?" he asked, stopping his maelstrom of teasing for a few seconds at least. I smiled slightly, "I've got something for Velvet, now I need to get something for Ton-Ton." I said, looking around for some kind of doll she didn't have, or something she might like in general. Ren shrugged, walking towards the door. "Alright. You get the toy, I'll get the sweets." he said. I nodded back at him as he walked out, me bending over and looking at the dolls on the bottom of the shelves. Blake raised an eyebrow, looking down at me as she approached. With Ren gone she seemed more comfortable to get closer than nine feet. " _Huh, nine feet… nine lives… no I shouldn't…_ " I thought absently. She'd heard enough of Ren's stupid puns, _that_ was bad enough. I mean, they were worse than _mine_ … and even _Yang's_ for that matter.

"Umm, what was that? Why did that just happen?" she asked, walking over next to me and leaning down to my level. I looked over at her, smiling slightly. "Ren and I have a system when we leave Vale on a job. If I decide to buy a toy for Ton-Ton, he gets her candy, same goes if I buy the candy. We've had _waaaaay_ too many close calls when both of us got her the same toy or the same candy… thank our lucky stars she was more gullible back then." I said, muttering the last part of it. Blake raised an eyebrow but, if she had any questions, she didn't raise them. In the meantime, I just kept looking along the lower shelves of the store. I saw dolls with red hair, blue hair, black hair, white hair, brown hair, blonde hair, even two with green and purple hair. I sighed, rubbing the back of my neck as I stood, feeling my back cracking slightly. "Crap, what should I get her…" I thought, scratching my chin slightly.

I felt a light tapping on my arm, causing me to look over. I saw Blake holding up what looked like a large teddy bear, almost the size of Ton-Ton herself. "How about this one?" she asked, holding it up slightly. I scratched at my chin as I tried to remember what kind of dolls Ton-Ton had. Did she have any as big as she was?... okay no, she didn't. "Yeah… I think that could work." I said, smiling slightly as I grabbed it by the scruff… er, fabric, of it's neck. I found that, for being made of stuffing, it was surprisingly heavy. I walked towards the cash register, seeing a rather strange sight. The woman at the front looked… familiar, somehow. She had bright blue eyes, not that uncommon, dark skin, also not that uncommon, and pale green hair. Okay, _that_ was a little uncommon. I set the bear on the table as I took in the details of the woman. She was dressed in the uniform of the store we were in, as I saw a man wearing a similar uniform not five minutes ago. The nametag said 'May' on it, but I felt like I'd seen her somewhere before…

"Will this be all sir?" she asked, giving me a bright smile as she scanned the teddy bear. I reached into my hat, grabbing out a card of lien and laying it on the counter. "Yeah." I said simply, still trying to remember where I'd seen her. The green hair… that _had_ to be it, something about that hair was familiar. I absently looked around as the woman swiped the card, setting it in the register and handing the bear to me. "Here you are sir, have a nice day!" she said, shutting her eyes and smiling. I nodded, tipping my hat towards her as I started walking out, Blake following close by. "She seemed cheerful." she said, hazarding a glance backward. I did the same, though _much_ more subtle than Blake, as I didn't want anyone to know I was looking. I noticed the girl leaning down, grabbing something on the floor. I turned my head back forwards, heading for the candy shop next door. " _Yeah, a little too cheerful._ " I thought.

I pushed open the door to the shop, finding Ren walking over to the counter, laying down a few assorted candies that, fittingly, looked like carrots, at the counter. "Will that be all for you sir?" I heard the girl behind the counter ask. I looked at her, still somewhat suspicious from the last girl, and found that this one looked like what I'd expect a Mistral cashier to look like. She had black hair, brown eyes, and pale white skin. She was what most people thought of when they thought 'Mistral'. Ren paid quickly, not speaking a word as the girl uttered a rushed 'Have a nice day.'. I wouldn't have thought anything of it, if it weren't for the fact I saw her bending over too, reaching beneath the counter, just like the other girl. I looked at Ren, giving him a look that said 'Something's wrong'. Ren nodded, understand and, rather than letting another teasing pun fly, the two of us started walking, towards the center of the little shopping district.

"What do you think it is?" he asked, leaning over towards me so he wouldn't be heard. I shrugged, as slight and unnoticeable as I could make it. I looked around, seeing a crystal blue sky with no clouds, not many shadows were cast, making it difficult to hide. Not to mention there were people walking all over the place, not a good time for an ambush at least. "Not sure. Both the girls at the counter's bent over after we left, and seemed _way_ too cheerful for this place. I don't think it's a coincidence." I whispered, both of us stopping as we reached a few people in a crowd. They were crowded around a woman, dressed in a long black dress. She was eye-catching and, by most people's standards, amazingly pretty. She was wearing what looked to be almost clear high-heels, and black stockings that reached up into her dress. The instrument she was playing was a beautifully crafted black violin. I heard her singing in a language I didn't know, her voice soft and melodious. There was a violin case open beneath her, a few cards of lien present. A street performer.

I looked at the crowd, seeing that, if they weren't leaning against each other on benches, they were leaning against each other while standing, everyone swaying to the melody. Apparently the song appealed to couples. There were seven couples if I counted right. When the woman stopped, all of them applauded, a few people walking past dropping cards of lien for the woman as she bowed. I saw her open her eyes a moment later, bright and flaming with a sort of cold fire. Her eyes locked onto mine as I saw hers flash with something. Though it could've just been the light, since the second I saw it, it disappeared. "Didn't expect to hear The Ballad of the Lionheart this time of year." Ren said, smiling towards the woman. She smiled back, setting her bow against her violin as she laid both against the ground. Ren leaned down, setting a card of lien inside of the open case. "Thank you. I must admit, I hadn't expected someone so… young, to know The Ballad of the Lionheart." she said, her voice almost monotone.

"I know it well, I was raised listening to those types of songs. Do you know The Call of the Valkyries Heart?" Ren asked, smiling slightly. I knew the one Ren was talking about now, it was an old song, a folk song from Mistral, one he said he sang to Nora when they were… well let's just say he'd rarely finish before Nora started having fun. As a Mistral native, I guess it made sense Ren would know about all of them. She smiled, her eyes sparking, "Of course Ren." she said. I felt my eyes widen as I grabbed at my gun, Ren and Blake doing the same. She just chuckled, whistling slightly. I looked around, seeing all the couples, even most of the people walking around us, suddenly stop, all glaring at us. I could see it in there eyes, the cold, the murderous intent. We'd walked right into a trap. "There's quite a price on your heads. Six million lien, more than Mercury's." the woman said, reaching for her violin. I saw her grab at the back, pulling out what looked like a pistol as she laid the violin down on the ground. I looked around, seeing every one of the assassin's grabbing weapons of their own.

" _Gotta think of a way out of this… ahah!_ " I thought, smiling slightly. If there was one way to stop a group of assassins and/or bounty hunters, it was by exploiting their biggest weaknesses, Pride and Greed. "Well, I guess you got us. Quite impressive." I said, holding up my hands slightly. The assassin's around us started chuckling, all of them moving closer as they gripped their triggers. "Though, I just have one question." I said, looking towards the woman, the one I guessed to be the leader. Of course, when she responded, I figured I guessed right. "And what's that?" she asked. I smirked,

"Which one of you gets the reward money?"

This produced the predicted results, all of them looking between each other, some glaring. "What? You can't _all_ claim the reward on our heads." I said, looking around. The woman, assumingly the leader, just looked around, speaking quickly. "Don't listen to him, he's trying to confuse you!" she said. She was right. The masses of assassins didn't seem to listen, many of them starting to yell that they deserved it, some others yelling over them, and others over them, until it just sounded like one big shouting match. I smirked as I grabbed Blake and Ren's hands. "Dive to the floor on three." I whispered. They both nodded. Meanwhile, the woman kept trying to control her group. "Stop shouting! Listen!" she yelled, to no effect. "One, two, three!"

BANG!

I pulled them down, firing a bullet at the woman. She fell back into the fountain and, hearing the shot, exactly what I expected to happen, happened. I heard the gunshots as the assassins turned on one another, shooting at each other as they failed to realize what was going on. I looked up, firing my own revolver towards the people in front of me. I heard the sounds of gunfire close by and I knew Blake and Ren were firing their own weapons. Though I couldn't really see since the giant teddy bear I'd bought Ton-Ton was right between us. It felt like a lifetime, but really it was probably just thirty seconds, when the bullets finally stopped. I looked up, reloading my revolver as I slowly stood, looking and listening for any assassins that might've survived the shooting.

Though, when I stood and looked, all I saw were bullet casings, blood, and corpses. I looked over, grabbing the bear and seeing Ren and Blake both standing up, dusting themselves off. "Okay… _that_ , was impressive." Blake said, smiling towards me. Ren nodded, giving me a similar smile. I shrugged, looking at the fountain as I saw the woman's stocking covered legs sticking out over the edge, her body sunk beneath the shallow water of the fountain. I saw a bit of red coming out around her. I walked over, tapping her knee a few times with my revolvers barrel, she didn't move an inch. "Yeah… think they all killed each other?" I asked, looking back towards my companions. Blake nodded, but Ren shook his head. I was about to ask why when he held up his gun, patting the side of it to eject the mag. He smirked, "I killed at _least_ three of them." he said as he reloaded a full magazine.

"How did you know that would work?" Blake asked, walking over to me as I started moving towards the exit, wanting to get as far away from the area as possible. In my experience, whenever a shootout happened, either Arc family representatives, the authorities, or the press would show up. As of now, I wasn't on great terms with any of the three. I stepped over a pool of blood before I answered, "Simple. Assassin's are almost always three things. Insane, obviously, Greedy, and Prideful. The way they looked, they were closer to bounty hunters than real assassins. I figured all of them wanted the money, so I figured I'd bring up the question of _who_ got the money. You saw how they argued." I said, placing my revolver back into my coat as I started walking back towards the hotel. Blake nodded, smiling towards me. "Yeah. I agree with you now. We need to get out of this damn country." she said. I chuckled, turning my head back around towards the walkway that lead back to our hotel, and hopefully soon, Vale. The place where I at least _knew_ the people that wanted me dead.

 **~meanwhile~**

I pulled out my colored contacts, laying them in their case as I sighed, tugging at the skirt of the uniform I was wearing. " _I hate_ _disguising as such a low-life._ " I thought, walking towards the area I heard the gunshots. I just quickly walked, wanting to see exactly what happened before Cinder started cleaning up. "You don't look half bad as a cashier May." I heard an annoying voice say from behind me. I groaned as I turned, glaring at the man. As if the gray hair, black eyes, and snarky attitude weren't enough to tell me who it was, the black cloak around his neck and guns in his hands were. "Mercury, see this?" I said, holding up a wallet. It belonged to the real May, it was an 'angel investment' from her. She'd been rather generous to not only give up all her clothes and money, but to even hide herself in one of the bears? That kind of kindness was to _die_ for nowadays. "Yeah it's the dead bitch's wallet. What about it?" he asked.

"If you stop talking, it's all yours." I said, glaring at him as we kept walking. Mercury shook his head, his eyes widening as he turned ahead. Mine did too once I saw it. It was an absolute _massacre_ , bodies and shells and blood all over the place. I looked all over, but I didn't see three key things. One, the detective's body. Two, his girl's body. Three, our target's body. Though, I _did_ see what was likely the last thing I expected. "Cinder!" me and Mercury both said, rushing towards our boss. The glass slippers, one of which had fallen off, were easy to recognize. Her legs were leaning out of the fountain, most of her body within. I grabbed one arm, Mercury grabbing the other as we pulled. Cinder was, as expected, still very much alive and mostly unharmed, other than maybe the slight nosebleed. She moved slightly forward so that she wouldn't fall back into the fountain. Then she moved her hands, grabbing at her soaking wet hair and pulling it away from her face. "Cinder?" I asked.

Her response was to spit out a stream of water, even one of the goldfish that was in the fountain landing on the ground. She blinked twice as she looked around… then she sighed, " _This_ is why I hate working with amateurs." she said, facepalming as she looked at the ground. Mercury reached behind him, grabbing out one of his signature black cloaks and wrapping it around her shoulders, fruitlessly trying to dry her off. Though, Cinder still grabbed the cloak when she stood, wrapping it around her as I saw her slightly shivering. She slipped her slipper back on, looking down as I saw her gaze twist into a mask of rage. I looked down, my heart nearly stopping as I saw it. Her violin that had been custom made to house her handgun, was shattered, ripped apart by a stray bullet. " _He really did it this time didn't he?_ " I thought, suddenly afraid for my own life as Cinder leaned down, her rage replaced with a calm and blank look. "Are you okay Cinder?" I asked.

She just stood, clutching the bow of her violin as she smiled, walking towards me. I got down on the ground, ignoring the blood soaking my pants as I shut my eyes. "I'M SORRY MA'AM!" I said. Sorry for what? I didn't know, but I knew the look, it was the one she got when she was about to hurt someone, usually me, over them doing something she didn't like. I yelped as I landed fully on the ground, the piercing sense of Cinder's glass slipper on my back as I looked up, seeing her with that same, evil smirk. "We're going to Vale." she said, striking my back again with the bow once she was done. She frowned, "This isn't working. Come Emerald, I'm angry." she said. I gulped as I nodded, reluctantly kneeling when she moved her foot. I looked up, my eyes pleading with the mad woman. Though, it seemed she didn't care, since the next thing she did was grab my neck.

I felt the sense of pressure on my neck and chest as I tried to breath, feeling myself picked up almost a foot off the ground by Cinder's arms, her gaze one of insanity. "You're pretty blue~ Let's see how far we can go!" she said, her smile full blown mad as I felt her grip tighten. I saw the dark spots on my vision as I felt the air leaving my lungs in a strangled and unintelligible cry for mercy. It burned worse than any fire. Just when I thought I was going to pass out, I felt her let go, my legs thudding against the ground as I gripped at my throat. I started coughing, my chest pained as I tried to get back my last oxygen. "Thank you." I said, still keeping my eyes shut. I felt her hand, soft, cold and wet, moving across my face. I didn't have to open my eyes to tell she was pleased with herself. I didn't know why she latched onto _me_ as her practical 'stress ball', but every time something didn't go right, every time Cinder was angry, she'd take it out on me.

Of course, I was too afraid of her to say anything about it.

Sometimes she just made me do about what I'd expect a maid would, clean or cook something for her. Other times, like now, she was sadistic and cruel, she was The Fallen, the name she'd rightly earned. When I opened my eyes, I saw that Mercury was behind her, his jaw set in anger and his fist clenching and unclenching, his eyes burning. There was a good reason Cinder normal did this in private, Mercury _hated_ seeing other people hurt like this. Not sure why though, I mean, he _was_ an assassin. I felt myself pulled up, Cinder placing my head in her hands as I kneeled, her bending over and standing. She smiled, "We're going back to prepare, come on. I expect you in my room, it's a B-day (this doesn't stand for birthday by the way) for me." she said. I gulped as I nodded, following behind as she started walking. It was always strange how Cinder could do that, make anyone feel small, weak and helpless, no matter who they were. What made her a good assassin I guess.

Mercury walked over to me, pulling me back a bit from Cinder. He leaned down, "Are you alright?" he asked, looking over at me. He was concerned, at least a little. I nodded, not answering for fear of Cinder's somehow all hearing ears. Mercury nodded, leaning back and moving a bit faster to catch up to Cinder. "So, what's the plan?" he asked, full volume this time, since he wasn't trying to keep anything from Cinder. Cinder giggled, tossing her hair back with one hand, getting a few drops on me in the process, before she took a breath. "We're going to Vale and we're completing this contract, just as we planned. With one, _minor_ change of plans." she said, walking forward and looking towards the tall hotel in the distance.

"Bloody Rose be damned, I'm _killing_ those detectives. And that little faunus bitch too."


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter thirteen: Impromptu missions

 **(a/n- Be advised, this first part is written from Mercury's point of view. This takes place shortly after the three assassin's make it back to their home base. Also, if you don't ship Emerald and Mercury… too bad.)**

" _Worthless!"_

" _Monster!"_

" _Bastard!"_

" _Never good enough."_

" _Never good enough."_

" _Never good enough."_

I looked down at the gun in my hands. My revolver, which had taken the lives of so many. I didn't even realize I'd loaded a bullet into the chamber until I saw it down the barrel, said barrel pointed at my forehead. I felt the familiar temptation, the urge to end the suffering and the hatred. The anger. "Huunngh." Then I heard the groaning behind me, reminding me of the reason I hadn't pulled the trigger yet. I quickly unloaded the bullet, putting it back in my pocket as I turned back, smiling slightly. I saw Emerald, laying back in my bed, facing the wall. I was sitting on the edge, so when she turned, her eyes fluttering open, I just turned back, knowing she wouldn't want me to see her so early in the morning. Though, that didn't stop me from seeing her bare shoulder. "Ow, think I pulled a muscle…" I heard her say. I smiled slightly as I looked back down at my gun, the terrible thoughts running through my head a moment ago all but gone.

I stopped myself from reacting as I felt and saw a slender, dark skinned arm reaching around my waist, another over my shoulder as I felt the pressure. I looked back, smirking a bit as I saw the blanket slipping off of Emerald, exposing her bare side to me. I felt a hand on my chin as I was pulled back, meeting Emerald's familiar smile. "Sleep well? I know I did~" she practically purred. I leaned in, meeting her lips for a few seconds before I pulled back. "You were great last night~" I said, black eyes meeting crimson ones. She looked over my shoulder, her eyes suddenly clouded in confusion. "Why do you have your gun out?" she asked. I looked back, seeing my revolver lazing against my thigh, right beneath where my boxers ended. I shrugged, setting it on the nightstand. "Checking over it. Can't kill if it doesn't work right?" I said, smirking back towards her. I could never bring myself to tell her about the thoughts, about the nightmares, about anything.

She smiled, "Yeah, guess so." she said, leaning in and setting her head on my shoulder, draping her arms around my bare torso. I looked back, frowning as I saw her back over her shoulder. It was scarred, bruised, it was almost like mine from a few years ago. Difference was, it wasn't anyone related to Emerald causing it. It was our boss. "Still sore?" I asked, gesturing back to her wounds. Emerald looked back, frowning slightly before she looked ahead. She sounded so distant and old, it was almost like listening to an old woman talk… though if she was, that would've made last night _much_ more awkward. "It wasn't that bad. Cinder was pissed sure but, it wasn't anything _humiliating_ for me like last time. She just… well, her whip got a lot of use…" she said, her face tinged slightly red. I reached a hand up, grabbing hers in mine. She looked down, her eyes taken aback by the sudden serious look in mine.

"Do you want me to do something about it?" I asked, and I meant it. If Emerald asked me, I would shoot Cinder without a second thought. The only reason I hadn't yet was because she kept me and Emerald both fed and alive. That and, you know, free of the _massive_ bounties on our heads. Six million for me, five million for Emerald. Speaking of, she shook her head, "No… it's fine. She's getting better about it." she said, giving me what was likely the _least_ convincing fake smile I'd ever seen. She was lying, and she was a good liar, don't get the wrong idea. She could fool anyone into believing her story.

But she could never fool me.

"I just hate seeing her hurt you…" I said, squeezing her hand slightly as I felt that familiar rage burning in the pit of my stomach. It was anger towards my family, towards Cinder… towards myself. I always just stood by when others got hurt… I could never do anything about it, or I just wouldn't. I felt Emerald squeeze back, drawing my attention back to her. She shook her head, "It's okay Mercury… but you know, I wouldn't mind if _you_ hurt me a little~" she said, smirking at me as she leaned in, kissing me again. This time I moved around, pushing her back down onto the bed as I looked down at her. She smiled up at me, wrapping her arms around my neck. "We don't have anything to do for a few hours right?" I asked, feeling my breathing picking up as my eyes trailed down her naked body. I could feel my face heating up, but I didn't try and hide it. I heard Emerald's giggle, and that's what did it. I leaned down, kissing her neck. Something about her laugh was so _impossible_ for me to resist.

"Yeah, we've got a few hours. Let's have some fun~" she said when I looked back up. I leaned down, kissing her again as I let my eyes shut, tugging her hair with one hand as I caressed her face with the other. She was a good kisser, no doubting that much. I wasn't the first guy she'd taken, and I probably wouldn't be the last either come to think of it. Course, that didn't matter to me right now. It was just me and her, alone, in my bedroom. No clothes on, only sheets between us. I didn't need to know her past, I didn't need to see the future, all I cared about was the present, where it was just me, and her. Mom always said I'd know, when I found the one. I guess she was right. I didn't have much experience, but I didn't have to to know,

"I love you Emerald. Now let's have some fun~"

 **(a/n- alright away from the fluff development and back to Jaune's point of view. Different time, different place,** _ **very**_ **different circumstances.)**

I grunted as I set the large teddy bear on the bed in mine and Ren's room. Man that thing was _heavy_. "Don't tell me you can't carry a stuffed bear Jaune." I heard Blake say. I didn't have to turn around to know that she was smirking at me, that same, smug look on her face as when she knew she was right about something. I turned around, glaring at her. Though, the effectiveness of it was probably toned down thanks to the small smile on my face. "Hey, I'm pretty sure that thing's stuffed with metal or something. It's _heavy_." I said, lightly pushing the bear over. Of course, it fell on the floor with a thud. Though, that thud was _much_ louder than I'd expected. "Uh, Jaune?" Ren asked, walking over. I was slightly alarmed when he pulled out his gun, pointing towards what looked to be a hole in the back of the bear. I shrugged, "So what? It's some faulty stitching." I said.

"Maybe, but since when is bear stuffing _pink_."

I raised an eyebrow but, sure enough, the second I looked down, I noticed that the inside was indeed pink. It didn't even look like stuffing, it was just a shade of pink. "Okay there _has_ to be a reasonable explanation for this…" I said, searching my slightly panicking mind to try and find one. Maybe it was just some cloth beneath the fur? Maybe some silk? Maybe it was just painted that way for some unknown reason? Though, considering how heavy the bear was, I was starting to think it wasn't a kind of cloth at all. "Open it." Ren said, aiming the gun at the back of it. I looked over but, seeing the gaze he held, the intense concentration he had on the bear, I knew there was no talking him out of it. I just sighed, slowly shaking my head as I reaching into my coat, pulling out the knife I used to slice cigars. "Fine, but you're sewing this thing back up." I said, pointing at Ren with the knife. I reached down, slowly slicing back at the stitching.

"HMPH!"

I jumped back, hitting my head against the bed as even Ren seemed to panic, nearly dropping his gun as I saw the magazine fall out of the bottom of it. Blake slowly walked over, nudging the bear with her foot. Sure enough, a similar sound came out of the bear. I sat up, moving towards it and continuing to slice down with my knife, my eyes widening when I finally realized what I was looking at. The reason the bear had made that noise? There was a small, red line in what seemed to be white flesh, made by my knife. I moved further down, finding unscathed flesh down beneath it. I kept my knife back as I reached the bottom of the bear. I pulled it open, standing the bear up as I saw it's contents spill out. I felt my eyes widening as I saw it.

It was a girl.

The girl had what looked like zip-ties around her wrists, and her ankles. Around her mouth and head, keeping her pink hair, turns out that's what that was, pinned against her neck, was a long, green cloth. Her face was bright red, though her cheeks were a bit sunken in. I reached up, untying the cloth behind her head. She spit, what looked to be pale pink undergarments falling out of her mouth. They were soaked in spit, as was to be expected, and if I had to guess, they were hers. When she finally caught her breath, she spoke. "Thank you." she said, her voice high, but scratchy. I blinked twice as my eyes took in most details. The only clothing she seemed to have on her was those zip-ties. She was curled up, likely to preserve modesty, with her rear facing away from all of us. I leaned down, cutting the ties around her arms and legs. "Who are you?" Blake asked.

"My name is-" she was interrupted by a short coughing fit, her eyes looking towards the door. "Sorry… do you have any water?" she asked, looking towards me. I nodded, standing and walking over to the bathroom. I grabbed one of the plastic cups by the sink, quickly filling it with water as I tried to think about _why_ she was stuffed in a bear. I walked back in, handing her the cup of water as Blake walked over to my bed, pulling the comforter off of it and wrapping it around our pink haired guest. She smiled slightly as she wrapped the comforter around her, holding the cup with one hand, keeping herself covered with the other. She tilted the cup back, drinking every drop of water in it before she set it down on the nightstand. "My name is May Zedong." she said, answering my question from a minute ago.

"Wait, did you work at that toy store I bought the bear from by chance?" I asked, getting down on one knee so that I was at the same height as her. She nodded, looking over as Ren and Blake both sat down nearby, likely thinking this conversation was going to take awhile. "How did you end up in that bear?" Blake asked, deciding to finally tackle the Goliath in the room. The newly named May shook her head, shaking slightly. "I… I don't know. I was on my lunch break when… when I just blacked out. When I came too… I felt cold. Someone said, 'This is too small for me'. I couldn't see that well, I just saw a flash of green hair. I could hear and see everything… it was _horrible_ … I watched them seal me in that bear and… and…" she raised a hand up to cover her mouth, squeezing her eyes shut as I saw a line of sweat breaking out on her forehead. I reached over, patting her shoulder in the most comforting manner I could manage. "It's okay, you don't have to go on." I said, giving her a slight smile.

"May, would you mind showing me your left wrist?" Ren asked, looking at her with that cold, calculating stare. I knew that look, Ren was onto something. May complied, holding it out while she kept the comforter tight against her chest with her other hand. Ren turned her hand over, nodding as if to confirm something. He motioned me and Blake over, to which we both complied. "Aw hell…" I muttered, Blake letting out a gasp. On her arm was what appeared to be a black marking, running from just at her wrist back to her elbow. It was marking her veins, clearly it was in her blood. It went past her elbow, but it started fading from there, clearly not as concentrated. "Juiced up. As I thought." Ren said, letting go of her hand as May pulled back, looking down at it herself in alarm.

"I'm… I'm gonna be okay, right?" she asked, her eyes flashing with fear as she gazed at Ren. I looked over too, seeing Ren reaching into his coat, pulling out what looked to be a notebook. They were just like mine back in Vale, but he didn't keep track of our cases. Instead, he kept an apothecary in a sense. I was fairly certain Ren had documented almost every method of poisoning someone, natural or synthetic, in existence as of now. He flipped through a few pages, nodding, "If you weren't going to be okay, you'd have been dead within thirty minutes of exposure. You got lucky, they didn't give you a strong enough dose to kill you." he said, shutting his book before shoving it back in his coat. Blake looked at him oddly for a second.

"How exactly did you know what that was?" she asked. Ren chuckled, reaching around his neck. He pulled out, surprisingly, what looked to be a small vial of black liquid. It was maybe the size of his fingernail at most, but I didn't doubt it could knock out me, Blake, or May if he got a hold of us. "It's my preferred method." he said simply, laying it back into his shirt. May slowly moved back, likely trying to get as far away from Ren as she could, being in _no_ hurry to get poisoned again. Even Blake seemed to be a bit wary, reaching towards her gun. "Relax, I haven't poisoned anyone since I became a detective… as far as you know." he said, muttering the last bit. I sighed, shaking my head as I tossed my fedora off to the side, "Ren, you're scaring them, cut the Serial Sleeper act." I said.

He sighed, "You're no fun." he said, pulling back his shirt and dropping the vial of poison back, letting it thud against his chest. I stood, sitting back up on the bed before I heard Blake speak. "Wait, 'Serial Sleeper'? What're you talking about?" she asked, glaring towards Ren. I had a feeling that would come up. The crime I got Ren for, his hypnosis of the dead to rob banks, wasn't his worse. Instead, his worse was what he just mentioned. "Ren here was a serial killer back before I caught him. Nora kept him hopped up on White Lady, he kept killing. He'd lure pretty girls like you two home where he'd poison them." I explained casually. Just as Ren had said before, he was high off his ass whenever it happened. Blake raised an eyebrow, asking the question I'd expected her to. "White Lady?"

"It's a street name, you'd know it better as cocaine. Nora got me hooked on it until Jaune caught me." Ren explained, standing up and taking off the suit top and tie, exposing his white undershirt. He sat down next to me, looking towards Blake, as if challenging her. Blake didn't take it, rather May spoke. "What now?" she asked, looking back towards me. I opened my mouth to speak, but then I shut it, furrowing my brow as I started thinking. What _did_ we do? I didn't doubt that the pale haired cashier was the one that poisoned her, so what was to stop her from coming back? Killing her permanently this time and eliminating any incriminating evidence. If we just let her go back home, I didn't doubt for a second that girl would find and kill her within the week. "Hmm… Blake?" I asked, looking over towards her. She nodded, "Yeah?" she asked.

"How would you feel about doing an impromptu Beacon transport mission?" I asked. Her eyes widened slightly for a few seconds, but then she smiled, sighing slightly. She stood up, walking towards the door. "I'll go grab some clothes of mine, she can wear them till we get to Vale." she said, walking out without another word. We sat in silence for awhile, waiting for Blake to get back, when May spoke up again. "Umm, what's a Beacon transport mission? Can't I just go home?" she asked, sporting a sad expression as she looked over at me. I shook my head, frowning towards her. I knew she must've been in shock, and wanted nothing more than to go home to her family, but that simply wasn't an option. "Sorry, but if the one that poisoned you finds out you're alive, you're as good as dead. Beacon deals with stuff like this all the time. We'll get you to Vale and set you up with a new identity until we can get rid of your attacker. Think of it as… witness protection." I said, smiling slightly. I was smiling really just to try and make her feel better about this.

She sighed, looking down at the floor as she wiped at her teary eyes. "I don't understand… why me?" she asked, sniffing. I could tell she was trying to keep from crying. Indeed, why her? Why just the random cashier girl trying to make a living? I stood up, walking into the bathroom and grabbing the box of tissues on the counter. I tossed them over near May, who quickly grabbed one and noisily blew her nose. "Thanks." she said, curling deeper into the blanket. I nodded, sitting back on the bed as I grabbed my hat, setting it on the nightstand. I reached into my pocket, pulling out my knife and laying it next to my hat. "Don't mention it May. You can sleep in Blake's room until morning, then we'll get you out of Vale." I said. Of course Ren, never one to miss an opportunity, spoke.

"Sure you wouldn't rather-"

" _SERIOUSLY_ Ren. Stop."

I sighed as I pulled off my trenchcoat, laying it back on the bed before I reached into the side, getting out Crocea Mors and laying it on the nightstand. Would hate it going off accidentally if I rolled over it. May looked up, raising an eyebrow as I opened the drawer to the nightstand. "Wait, that lady, Blake. Who is she?" she asked, gray-blue eyes meeting mine. I smiled slightly, grabbing my coat and hooking it, sort of, on the post of the bed. I swung my legs back over the bed as I answered. "Well she's… she's complicated I guess. She's a little anti-social but, her heart's in the right place." I said, looking up at the ceiling as I laid my head in my hands… which was a bit odd since there was a pillow right beneath them but hey, it's what I did. When I looked back over at May, I saw her smile slightly.

"Is she your girlfriend?"

"Yes/no."

I turned around, glaring at Ren as he just held up his hands, keeping that familiar smug look on his face. I sighed, turning back to May, whose expression was just confused at this point. "Ignore him, he doesn't know what he's talking about." I said somewhat quickly. May let out a giggle at this before she smiled, and it was at that point I really looked at her. I noticed something, while her right eye was bluish-gray, her left was, strangely, pale. Not a pale sort of color or anything just… pale. Like it had almost no color at all. I sported a quizzical expression, and apparently this tipped her off. "Something about my eye right?" she asked. I nodded, now that I noticed it unable to really keep my eyes off of it. She sighed, reaching a hand behind her and running it through her hair. "I… if I told you I wasn't the most… morally righteous, of people, you wouldn't hold it against me would you?" she asked, seemingly nervous.

I shook my head, "Look at us for a second. I'm a detective that used to be a hitman and Ren was a straight up serial killer, what do you think?" I asked. She giggled again, looking away as I noticed her face tinge pink, almost the same color as her hair at that. "Yeah… that was a stupid question I know. Well… I guess we have something in common… umm, what was your name?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me. I raised one back… then felt my face flush red when I realized none of us had _actually_ bothered to introduce ourselves to her. "Sorry, I'm Jaune Arc, that's Lie Ren. The lady you saw earlier was Blake Belladonna." I said, holding out a hand towards her. She reached up, shaking my hand as her eyes suddenly got a puzzling quality to them, as if she were trying to figure something out. "Didn't Citri kill you?" she asked.

I moved back, taken aback that she knew about that. It was always a close guarded secret when an Arc family member died. _Especially_ when one killed another. She must've had _quite_ the connections if she knew about it. I nodded, "She tried. Gave me this," I said, holding up my shirt and showing her my scar. "And I gave her a bullet to the head." I said simply. I wasn't remorseful about it, one of the few kills I did that _didn't_ haunt me to this day. She attacked me, I killed her. Nothing personal, no family attachment, just a simple case of me defending myself. She nodded, "Well… I know about you, I guess it's fair you should know about me. I was like you...a hitman, er, you know, hit- _woman_ anyway." she said. I smiled at that, sitting back upright against the base of the bed to better speak with her.

"I worked out of Vale, I worked for the Khans… I know, old gang that no one hears about anymore, but still, I worked with them. Until… _it_ came along." she said, a visible shiver traveling up her spine as she sported an almost _terrified_ expression. I raised an eyebrow, "Who?" I asked. I'd expected it to be some Khan that just came in and replaced her, maybe she got in a gunfight or something? But no, what she actually said was the _last_ thing I'd expected to hear.

"The Bloody Rose."

I moved around, leaning in closer towards her as even Ren took interest, walking over towards us. "What did it do?" I asked, my eyes trailing towards her eye almost unconsciously. May leaned back into the comforter, her right hand keeping it pressed tight to her chest as her left trailed up to her eye. I saw her shut them as her hand traced over the outline of a nearly invisible scar, one I hadn't noticed before. "The Khan's and Rose family weren't always different. The Rose family broke off from us. At first it was normal, then the fighting started. It was _madness_ , brother turned on brother, sons killed their fathers and mothers butchered their kids… it was horrible. I was there, sniping from the distance. I killed Khans and Rose's alike. I didn't even know who the enemy _was_ half the time. Then… I got my last assignment." she said. I held out a hand, gesturing for her to stop,

"Wait, didn't you say it was chaos? You mean you still got orders? From who?" I asked. I was honestly rather confused, this _must've_ happened before I came to Vale, because I didn't hear anything even _remotely_ similar to this when I got there, hell, I'd thought the Rose family was it's own entity in all of this. "High leader Khan… at least, that was his _official_ name. He gave up his real one years earlier. I was the counter-sniper, protect High Leader Khan while he was being escorted back to a new safe-house. I fired off a few rounds… but it was just a blur. Flashes of red _everywhere_. I couldn't keep up, I didn't know what happened until… until I saw my spoke smash to bits right in front of me. It was the only one that could out snipe me. It was my fault… it was all my fault that Khan was killed, that we lost. Without him, none of us could stand together. We either went our separate ways and slowly got picked off by the Rose family, or we joined them. They thought I was dead… I'm the only real Khan left." she said, a few tears running down her face during her story without her noticing.

I reached down, grabbing a tissue and wiping away at her tears for a moment. Then she took over, smiling towards me. "Thanks." she said simply, blowing her nose again. I nodded, and I felt a spark of pity for her. She was just another victim of the Rose family and they're bloody method of taking over Vale. Even though she was a criminal… it was hard to be mad at her for it after all she'd been through. "So you got a glass eye?" I asked. She nodded, holding up her hand and, slightly surprising me, pulled her eye out of it's socket. I covered my eyes, "OKAY! NOTREADYFORTHATTHATWASDISGUSTINGOKAY!" I yelled, feeling the sudden urge to vomit in the nearest trashcan. I _hated_ dealing with eyes, for some reason I just couldn't stand it. I opened one eye, seeing May with both eyes back in her head, giggling slightly at me. "You know, for an ex-hitman, you're _really_ squeamish." I heard another voice say.

I opened one eye, seeing May with both eyes in her head, thankfully, and Blake walking towards us. She was carrying what looked to be some clothes over her arm, a smug look on her face when she looked at me. "Took you long enough." I said, glaring at her as best I could. She just giggled, tossing the clothes towards May. May grabbed them, then looked towards me and Ren. "Could you two turn around or, leave the room or… something?" she asked, her face tinged pink. I nodded, grabbing my hat and flipping it back on my head. I stood, walking towards the door before I looked back, seeing Ren walking towards me as well. "Just come out when you're done." I said, opening the door and walking into the hallway. Ren walked with me, shutting the door behind him. I just leaned against the wall next to the door, Ren doing the same on the other side.

"So she's a Khan too huh?" he said after a while, looking up towards the ceiling. I raised an eyebrow towards him, I'd never even _heard_ of the Khan's, so what was Ren talking about? Yet _another_ secret he was keeping from me? "Before you ask, no, I wasn't a Khan," Ren said, glaring at me as he seemed to read my very thoughts. "Nora was one though. Back before the whole Rose family civil war at least. The reason she and the Sugar sloths are still at war with the Rose family. Nora may have given up being a Khan to start her own gang, but she treats the Khans… what's _left_ of them, like family. We need to bring May to Nora." he said, looking over at me with that familiar look. His mind was dead set on this, not a chance of changing it. Not a chance in hell. I sighed, leaning my head back and looking up at the ceiling, "Fine. After that though, we get her to Coco and give her a new look. It's too risky for her to be in Vale undisguised and you know it." I said.

He didn't answer, but just kept staring at the ceiling, seemingly pondering what he was going to say. Though, before he could answer, the door opened. Blake walked out first, then May… dressed exactly the same as Blake. "Well… this isn't suspicious at all." I said sarcastically, looking towards Blake. She glared at me, one that sent a shiver up my spine. The glare reminded me that she'd probably taken care of _plenty_ of wise-asses in her time. "It's this or she goes on the plane naked and/or in that bear. We've got no choice." she said. I nodded, knowing she was right, and just watched as the two of them walked back towards her room, May giving one last smile at me before she walked inside, shutting the door. I stared after them for a beat longer before I turned back, following Ren back inside. "Jaune… this has got to be _the_ dumbest thing we've ever decided to do." he said, never one to not let you know about what he thought. I sighed,

"Yeah… but hey, dumb luck favors the dumb right?"


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter fourteen: Not victory, nor loss, but living.

 **(a/n- I looked all around the internet and, when that failed, straight up went to the episode and played it in slow motion, but I just couldn't find May's height… Well based on how Nora looks** _ **slightly**_ **taller when she's smashing team BRNZ out of the arena, but she's also raising up on one foot, we'll just say that the two are roughly the same height. Anyway, on with the story.)**

" _I can't believe that worked._ " I thought as I stepped off the plane, immediately dashing over to the nearest trashcan. When we'd gotten on the plane, I thought almost for sure _someone_ would recognize May, or at the very least ask what she was doing. Though, luck really _did_ seem to be on our side. We'd touched down in Vale without a hitch. Frankly, I was surprised we weren't shot at... again. "Are you okay?" I heard May ask. When I looked up from the trash can, I just smiled back at her and nodded. I stood, smoothing out my trench coat as I heard Blake speaking. "He's always like this. He doesn't have a very strong stomach." she said, smirking slightly at me. I could've argued, but really I didn't have a grounds to. I mean, she was right, I was _terrible_ in the air. She knew it, I knew it, Ren knew it, and now May knew it to.

Ren walked over, placing a hand on my shoulder before he raised an eyebrow, subtly gesturing to May. "We will, we need to get Neo." I said, whispering so that Blake and May wouldn't hear it. I wasn't all that worried if they found out what we planned, but I didn't want them to know regardless, just in case. Make it seem like a coincidence in case something went wrong. I stood up straight, nodding towards Blake and May. "Right, let's get going." I said, reaching down and grabbing my backpack, as well as the bear May was previously stuffed in. Ren had, as I'd told him he'd have to, sewn it back together so that we could give it to Ton-Ton as a present. Despite it being a prison of sorts, me and Ren didn't want to deal with the guilt Ton-Ton would no doubt make us feel.

The three of us walked out of the airport, dashing over to Ren's car as May and Blake got in the back seat. I sit down, reaching into my pocket and pulling out a cigar. One thing I'd not forgotten to do was get another box of cigars. Twenty-four of them to be exact. Course I only had three in my pocket at the moment. I flicked on my lighter before I looked over at Ren. He sighed, lowering the top on his car as he started driving down the street, heading for the familiar redlight district. Of course, the second we took a turn that lead to the seedy part of Vale, Blake spoke up. "I thought we were taking her to Coco. Coco's off that way." she said, jerking a thumb behind us. I nodded, letting out a puff of smoke as Ren turned the corner.

"We have to get Neo remember? I'd rather not leave her with Nora longer than necessary." I said. It wasn't a complete lie, I _saw_ the way Nora was looking at and talking about Neo, she found her cute and adorable. That was never good. Hopefully Neo wouldn't be in more trauma and, most importantly, still in one piece. Blake nodded, but her eyes told a different story. She didn't believe my reason. Of course, she didn't elaborate on it, just leaned over and looked out at the world around us. I did as well, seeing the people walking along the streets and just going on with their day zooming past as we neared our destination.

In ten minutes, we were at the same spot outside the hotel Rexford, right where we'd parked earlier to drop Neo off. May even decided to speak up, "This place seems… unnerving." she said, reaching down at her hip, likely hoping to find a gun or something. Unfortunately for her, she didn't have one on her. I just nodded, "Welcome to the redlight district, one of our friends is here. We need to get someone else before we can drop you off." I said, looking back at May. She just nodded as we got out, me opening the door for the two women just like last time. Blake was still eyeing me with a suspicious gaze, she knew something was up. We walked back through the alley, Ren going first like last time. The guy didn't even shout this time, he just saw Ren and opened the gate. Simple as that. "The boss is in her apartment with her new toy." he said. This set the alarm bells off in my head, new toy? He didn't mean Neo right?

Ren sighed, "Not again Nora…" he muttered, walking towards a nearby door. We followed, walking in behind him. It opened into what looked to be a pretty normal apartment building, with a table, chairs, and a kitchen off to the left. There were also two doors. One of them I guessed led to the bathroom, the other, the one that had the word 'BOOP' painted in bright pink letters on it, likely led to the bedroom. "Nora?" Ren said, loud enough that if she were anywhere in the small apartment, she would hear it. The door to the bedroom opened, as expected, and there was Nora. Oddly enough, she only had a towel wrapped around her, one hand holding onto it with the other holding her revolver. She looked over at us, smiling at Ren… but then her eyes widened as she saw May. The gun slipped out of her hands,

BANG!

"WOAH!" I yelled, jumping back and pulling Blake with me to keep us from getting hit by the bullet. I looked over, seeing a hole in the wall. May and Nora just stood there, both staring at one another, as if unbelieving. "Nora…" May said, blinking a few times as she wiped at her eyes. I could've sworn I saw tears forming on them. Nora didn't say anything, she just smiled before she rushed over, wrapping her arms around her. "May…" she said, squeezing May to her as, and I could just barely believe it myself, I saw a tear drip from Nora's eye. I looked away a moment later, not wanting to interrupt the tearful reunion. "Umm, Nora? You're towel." Blake said, having no such qualms as myself. Nora suddenly got a stupefied expression on her face as she pulled back, looking down to see the towel at her feet. Then she just shrugged, kicking the towel over at Ren.

Ren, who was just enjoying the view until that point, simply grabbed it, tossing it into the hamper in the bedroom from where he was. Nora walked over to the bedroom, smiling back at May. "I'll be out in a second." she said, right before walking in and shutting the door. Blake looked over at me, then at Ren, "Before you ask, yeah, Nora does that a lot." Ren said. Then Blake looked at me, and I just nodded in confirmation. Blake seemed almost stupefied at the simple idea. "She walks around naked… in front of both of you, all the time?" she asked, likely still trying to grasp what, to me and Ren, was a simple fact. We both nodded in unison, "Blake, Nora's a lot of things. A drinker, crazy, a murderer, crazy, a marksman, crazy, a flirt, crazy, and straight up shameless… am I forgetting something Ren?"

"Crazy?"

"Yeah, crazy." I said. Blake slowly nodded, taking in all the new information about the woman that we'd trusted care of Neo with… so I could completely understand why she was looking at us like we'd just killed a puppy in front of her. "She's all those things… but you left a _child_ with her?" she asked. May walked over, shaking her head as she placed a hand on Blake's shoulder. May was just smiling at her, "Nora's good with kids, don't worry… at least she was last time I saw her." she said, rubbing a hand behind her head somewhat sheepishly. I raised an eyebrow at this. At one point in her life, Nora was good with kids? The same one that I, at one point, had suspected of stealing babies and throwing them into blenders (a crack theory if I'd ever had one)? I suppose that many drugs can change even a saint into the insanity incarnate.

Though when Nora walked back in, dressed as always, with Neo at her side, I wasn't all that surprised when I saw that Neo was wearing a sloth costume. It was actually hard to see her face, and if the fact that she kept running into tables and walls was anything to go by, it wasn't easy for her to see either. I walked over, grabbing her hand and pulling back on the sloth head. She looked up, both of her eyes pale pink as she smiled up at me. "Hey Neo." I said, smiling down at her as I shut my eyes for a second. "Hi Jaune!" I froze, my eyes flashing back open as I saw Neo just standing there, smiling at me like before. Was that… was that her? "What?" she asked, tilting her head and holding up her sloth hand, seemingly scratching at her chin. **(a/n- Jaune's reaction will probably be everyone's if we ever see Neo talk come to think of it.)**

"You can talk?" Ren asked, raising an eyebrow as he walked over. Nora, ever the wise-ass, decided to comment on that. "Yeah, real trick is getting her to shut up." she said, her voice laced with sarcasm. Though, there was no venom in it, and Neo just giggled. I honestly wasn't sure if it was the same girl anymore. She just seemed so… different than before. Neo held up her arms, smiling up at me. I took a guess at what the gesture meant, having grown up with a few younger kids myself, and quickly picked her up. She smiled, moving around to where she was riding on my back, her arms wrapping around my neck as I unconsciously grabbed her legs to keep her from falling. She just laid her head on my shoulder, smiling at everyone. "Glad to see you're opening up a little." I said, smiling over at her.

She nodded, just laying her head down on my shoulder and almost nuzzling into it. I heard Nora, of all people, giggle at this, "I think she likes you Jaune." she said. I shrugged, walking over and standing behind the couch, as Nora was sitting in one of the chairs. Ren sat in the other chair next to Nora, while Blake and May sat on the couch. "Nora… I honestly thought I'd never see you again." May said, smiling at Nora as she had been for awhile now. Nora returned it, reaching over to the coffee table and pulling out a drawer and two glasses, both of which had diamond patterns on the glass.

"Beer?"

"Pussies drink beer. Khan's drink rum."

Nora laughed, reaching into the drawer and pulling out a bottle. I didn't really know much about liquor, other than I was only good for a whiskey or two, but I knew well enough the liquor that _Nora_ drank was much stronger than anything you'd find in a bar. "Khan special… aww, you remembered!" May said, smiling at Nora as she grabbed a glass. Nora grabbed the other before she shrugged, almost swishing a bit of her drink out of the glass as she poured for both of them. "Khan's special was your favorite, hey, it was my favorite too remember!" Nora said, holding forward her glass. May nodded, clinking her glass together with Nora's as the two sipped at their glasses, May coming up coughing while Nora just set it down.

"Lost your spirit?"

"Shut up!"

Me and Ren both froze at that. Nora had literally ripped people in _half_ for simply saying hi to her the wrong way. Or looking at her funny… or just because she _felt_ like it. For May to tell her to shut up? Oh she was _dead_. But then, something miraculous happened. Nora laughed. She just… laughed. Then she looked up at the slightly red faced May, giving her that same smile she'd had on most of the time. "It's good to have you back sis." she said. The second she said this me and Ren both looked at one another. I mouthed the word 'sisters' to him, my face confused. He just shrugged, equally as confused. May's last name was Zedong, Nora's was Valkyrie… unless May had changed her name. "How come you never told me you had a sister Nora?" Ren asked, turning over to face his girlfriend.

Nora looked over, smirking at her taller boyfriend. "I've told you about her a hundred times… then again you _were_ normally high, drunk, both, or it was right after we had sex… sometimes I think it was all four." she said, causing Ren to have a rather uncharacteristic blush on his face. Blake and May had one as well but, that was just since they didn't hang out with Ren or Nora very often. The two had basically _no_ filters, and would happily talk about sex, drugs, violence, or really anything for that matter. I mean for crying out loud the two had openly asked me, _me_ of all people, how to 'spice it up' in the bedroom… I wasn't sure whether to be happy, offended, or just run for my life.

"And no, we're not _really_ sisters. We had different parents… at least I think we did. Did we?" she asked, looking over at her friend/sister. Nora opened her mouth, looking like she was going to answer some obvious question, but then she slowly frowned, rubbing her chin with her hand and looking at the ceiling, her mouth moving over to the left in a quizzical expression. "I… don't know. I always figured my mom and dad only had me… course they did die when I was born so… Ah who cares! You're the closest thing to a sister I've ever had, that's good enough!" she said, raising her glass again. May did the same, the two sipping at their rum. Nora looked at May, a strange spark in her eye that I'd never seen before. I'd only seen it once, in my little sister when she asked me to read her a bedtime story. "You remember the story about the Khan special?" Nora asked. May chuckled, giving her a look that said 'You're kidding right?'

"The Khan special was created when the Khan's were first starting out, almost forty years ago. It was made by the first high leader, before the one the bloody rose took out… the one I…" she stopped, looking down at the table as I saw her fingertips turn white on the glass. She was clutching it with so much strength I was surprised it didn't break. Nora frowned, walking over and placing a hand on her shoulder with a gentleness I didn't even know she possessed. "Hey, don't blame yourself. No one's ever outshot the bloody rose, you _know_ it isn't your fault, so stop punishing yourself. They did enough of that already…" Nora said, frowning as I saw her gently moving her hand over May's left eye, moving down and cupping her face. I saw May shut her eyes, reaching up her hand and placing it on Nora's right, holding both their hands to her face. She let out a sigh, seemingly leaning into their hands, before she looked up.

"The Khan special was made for two things. One was for victory, when you managed to pull something off that you shouldn't have, or maybe something else. The other… was for defeat. When you fail so horribly, you can't stand it, and it drives you literally to drink." she said, opening her right eye and looking at the glass in her hand. She set the glass down on the table, staring at it seemingly longingly. I saw her eye start shining as a tear made it's way down her face. "Never… I've never drank it for victory. I always lose… I always have…" she said, her voice suddenly becoming distant. Nora surprised May, Ren, me, Blake, Neo, and maybe even herself, when she leaned down, wrapping her arms around May and patting her back comfortingly.

"Then consider this your first victory drink." she said, jumping back with that usual Nora energy I was used to. She thrust the glass into May's hand, and grabbed her own, still standing up. May looked up, wiping away at the tears in her eyes. "What're you-" "Upupup! No talkie! Just listenie!" Nora said, waving a single finger in the air in front of May. When May didn't respond, Nora went right on talking. "Sure, you didn't save our leader. So what? You escaped from the _bloody rose_. THE bloody rose! You're the only person in _history_ that's ever gotten away from her! You won May… just by being alive, you _won_. If that's still losing, well then FUCK winning! You're LIVING!" Nora yelled, her enthusiasm seeming to get to May, who smiled up at her taller friend. May stood up, smiling at Nora.

"We aren't drinking for victory May. We aren't drinking for losing either. We're drinking for life! To being alive!" Nora said, thrusting her glass out. May let out a little chuckle as she grabbed her own glass, clinking it together with Nora's. "To life." she echoed, then the two downed what was left in their glasses. May came up sputtering, but she still smiled, even when Nora was patting her on the back to help her recover from the drinking, she still smiled. After a few minutes, Nora looked back at the rest of us. Then she smiled, reaching down and grabbing a few glasses. "Well, everybody! To being alive!" she yelled, holding up her own glass as she filled it with the Khan's special again. Neo jumped off of me, walking over to the kitchen and reaching up, grabbing what looked to be her own glass, filled with some brown liquid, assumingly apple juice.

I didn't wait for Nora to pour my glass, I just walked outside. I heard the door shut behind me as I leaned back, feeling the cold brick wall through my coat and shirt. I let out a breath, seeing it fogging up in front of me. "Nearing winter…" I muttered, reaching into my pocket. Of course, it didn't matter to me all that much. I'd just add a layer beneath my coat if it got cold enough. Worst case scenario I could always get out my winter coat. "Not much for parties huh?" I heard a familiar voice ask as the door shut again. I looked over, seeing Blake's familiar figure walk over, standing right next to me, putting herself between me and the doorway. I shrugged, reaching into a pocket and pulling out a cigar. "Yeah, you?" I asked.

She reached into her jacket pocket, pulling out, to my surprise, a cigar the same brand as mine. "Nope. Two's company…" she left it hanging, "Three's a crowd." I finished, smiling over at her. She smiled back, reaching into her other pocket and pulling out a lighter. "I don't see you smoke that often. Celebrating with them?" I asked, smiling at her as I set my cigar between my lips, quickly lighting it. When I looked over again, she was smiling back, looking right at me with those sparkling amber eyes. "Guess so. Care to light me?" she asked, stepping closer, to the point I could feel her warmth on my arm. I leaned over as she placed the cigar in her mouth. I touched my cigar to hers, lighting it up. "Really need to get you a better lighter." I said, getting a little giggle out of her. I nearly froze when I felt her lean her head on my shoulder, still smoking her cigar.

I grabbed mine, letting out a puff before I held it towards her. "To life?" I said, almost like a question as I imitated what they were doing inside. I could still hear the muffled noises of their revelry from inside. She giggled, taking out her own cigar and touching it to mine as their smoke streams intertwined. "To life." she echoed. I pulled my cigar back, setting it between my lips again as I just stood, Blake on my shoulder, in content silence. After awhile, I looked down, seeing that her left hand was actually near my right, being as I was smoking with my left for once. I let out puff and let my hand brush against hers. She didn't speak, but I felt it, the softness of her hand. I wrapped my own in hers and, when I looked over, I saw her face was tinted pink, just like mine felt. When I looked up again, I saw something else, a snowflake. The first one of the year, falling right towards us.

I just smiled, letting out a puff as I saw the snowflake seemingly get captured in it. I felt Blake move her hand, going for the bolder move of wrapping it around my waist, rather than just holding my hand. I took her up on it, moving my hand up and wrapping it around her shoulder, pulling her closer. When I looked down, she just smiled up at me, her face tinged even brighter. We both let out a puff of smoke, watching the two clouds entwine and dance in the new falling snow. For the first time in awhile, I stopped thinking. I stopped thinking about my cases, about Beacon, about Yang, Ruby, Jasmine, Maria, the Arc clan, all of it. There was only one thing on my mind. The here and now. Me, and Blake. I shut my eyes, enjoying Blake's warmth contrasting to the cold of the brick and air, and for the first time in awhile, I felt at peace. Calm. Happy. Then I grabbed my cigar, taking it out and letting a puff before gently moving it up in the air, as if toasting the world.

" _To life._ "


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter fifteen: Ruby the broken, Pyrrha the false

 **(a/n- this first part's written from… well you'll figure it out soon enough. Minor disclaimer on this one. Skip past the first part if you don't want to see child abuse)**

"GAH!"

I yelled as I felt the familiar pain at my back. I saw only darkness as I heard the familiar sound of my chains rattling. "Repeat after me. I am a failure." I heard the familiar, dark velvet voice of my mother say. I was still panting from the workout I'd had before I was taken up here, but I gulped and said so anyway. "I am a failure." I grunted as I felt the whip on my back again. I moved my hands, feeling the old shackles nearly cutting into my wrists. I gulped as I felt a soft hand on my side. I knew the drill, and I just repeated whatever she said, and I really did believe it, at this point.

"Mama knows best."

"I deserve worse."

"I serve mama, and only mama."

"No one is better than my mama."

"I am worthless, mama makes me worth something."

"No one deserves to live if they hurt mama."

I felt the last sting of the whip as I repeated the last line, the feeling of my feet's shackles being undone. When I looked up, I felt my blindfold removed, revealing my mother standing there. Piercing silver eyes gazed at me as she placed her hand on my scarred stomach. She gently trailed it up, smiling at me. "Who are you?" she asked. I knew the answer, from being wrong so many times. Or rather, I knew what she _wanted_ to hear, and what the correct answer was in _her_ eyes. "I am the bloody rose. I was made by you, I kill for you, I will die for you." I said, my mouth twinging up in an insane smirk. She smiled at me, leaning in and planting a kiss on my cheek, the way she always did. "That's my girl. Now go ahead and play~" she said, unlocking my arm shackles as I fell to the floor. I stood, walking right past her. I walked down the hall, not bothering to go to my room and put on clothes. I wouldn't need them for what I was doing.

The few servants that walked past me quickly looked away or ran the opposite direction the second they saw the insane smirk on my face. I walked into the familiar room, with the gun range and the practice dummy, and walked over to the familiar, blood splattered spot. I walked over, grabbing the handgun from the ground as I aimed at the target dummy. I saw a man walk over, standing nearby. I aimed down the sights, and I fired three rounds. "Two hits!" he said. I gritted my teeth as I reached over, grabbing the knife, stained red with blood. Mine. "RAH! TWO MORE!" I yelled, slicing the knife over my forearm, feeling the blood splattering across the wall, as well as my bare stomach. I aimed down the sights, fighting through the pain of my injury as I shot three more times. "All hits!" he said. I nodded, firing the rest of the bullets in the mag, meaning there were two of them. "Miss!" he said. I growled as I reached down, making two more long slices in my arms. I set down the gun, walking over to the dummy and holding the knife.

I started swinging around, punching, stabbing, slicing, and kicking at the dummy, slicing hard enough that, at one point, I watched it's head fall off. I panted as I felt my vision blurring, no doubt from the blood loss. " _Never good enough for mama. Train harder, get better, fight through it for mama!_ " I yelled to myself as I kept training, even when I felt my body get weaker, I pushed on, striking and striking at it, splinters of wood hitting my bare body. Let them hit, the little pains distracted me from the main one. Eventually though I dropped the knife, staggering backwards as I held a hand up to my head. Everything started spinning as I fell down, looking up to see a woman rushing towards me. I just shut my eyes, letting my head loll of to the side as I passed out from exhaustion and blood loss.

" _I will be perfect for you mama, even if it kills me._ "

 **(a/n- wow…** _ **that**_ **came outta nowhere. Anyway, back to some less dark stuff relating to Jaune.)**

I don't know how long I stood there, standing in Blake's embrace and smoking my cigar. Blake warmed the outside, and the smoke was slowly warming my insides too, muddling my thoughts a little. Eventually though, I tossed my cigar to the ground, Blake doing the same. We snuffed them out at once, having burned them down to stubs. I looked over at Blake, and she looked over at me. "Hey…" we both said in unison. Then we looked away, my face tinged slightly pink as I noticed hers was the same way. When I looked back, I found her looking back as well, gazing up at me. "So… guess we should head in huh?" I asked, giving her a little smile. She sighed, moving her arms and surprising me by wrapping them around me. I felt my face tinge light red, but I followed suit, wrapping mine around hers. When she looked up, she was smiling at me. "Guess so huh?" she said. I noticed something off, one of her hairs was over in front of her face, on the right side. I reached up, moving it back behind her ear as I nodded. "Yeah…" I said, using my other hand and doing the same on the other side.

I felt my hands come to rest on the back of her neck, our breaths fogging between us. It had gotten a bit colder since we'd been outside. I leaned in closer, so did she. In my head I was slightly panicking, was I really about to do this? She leaned closer still, enough that I could even smell the perfume she was wearing. I leaned in, our breaths mixing as amber eyes met blue one's. We both stayed there for a moment, just staring at one another eyes, it felt like a lifetime doing it. I was fine with that though. "Has anyone ever told you you have really pretty eyes?" I asked, smiling slightly at her. I heard her giggle, shaking her head as I saw her bow twitch slightly, her ears flicking around a bit. "Your's are pretty too. Like looking into an ocean…" she said, stopping as she leaned closer. I did too, at this point our lips were just barely a hair's breadth apart.

"JAUNE!"

I jumped back, Blake and me both hitting the wall as I saw Nora come stumbling out of the door, a bottle of Khan special in one hand, Ren's hand in the other. Ren came out, stumbling slightly. His face was as red as his girlfriend. Both of them were completely drunk. I was slightly thankful for that, since now Ren couldn't see what me and Blake were about to do and tease us about it. Speaking of, I pulled back a little from Blake, but still held her close, as the two drunk lovebirds, looked at each other. "Come on baby~ Let's have some fun." Nora said, grabbing Ren's tie and pulling him into a drunken kiss. I looked over, seeing May walking out, covering Neo's eyes with her hands, and her ears with her arms.

"What's going on?!"

"DON'T LOOK NEO!"

She looked over at me and Blake, gesturing towards the drunk kissing couple with a quizzical look. I didn't doubt it meant 'How're we getting home?'. I sighed, walking out of Blake's warmth and over to Ren. I grabbed the keys out of his pocket, and thanks to his drunken state, he didn't seem to notice. I walked over to Neo and May, motioning them to follow me. Blake did the same as I saw a few sugar sloths going over to their boss, guiding the two lovebirds back into their 'nest' as it were. "Let me guess… this happens often?" Blake asked, looking over at me, back to her normal expression. I just sighed, picking up my hat slight and running a hand through my hair. "Sadly yes. Normally I just walk home, but I don't intend doing that with all of you. This isn't the _first_ time I've taken his keys and drove home without him." I said, smiling slightly at the memory.

May, seemingly having figured we were far enough from Ren and Nora, let go of Neo, letting the girl disguised as a sloth look around again. "Are we going home Jaune?" she asked, blinking up at me with her pale pink eyes. I just nodded, smiling down at her before I turned around, walking back past the entrance to Nora's hide away and towards Ren's car. I pulled open the door, gesturing inside the vehicle. May and Neo got in, but Blake walked past, waiting for me to get out from the passenger door. I shut the back door, opening the passenger door as Blake got in, her hand brushing against mine as she smiled. "Thanks." she said simply, shutting the door behind her as I shook myself out of my sudden stupor. I walked over to the edge, getting in the car as I adjusted the mirror's, seat, and basically everything else. Me and Ren drove _completely_ differently in so many aspects.

When I was finally settled, I buckled up and drove off, heading for the office at first. "May… do you still-" "No." she said simply, smiling over at me. I looked back at the road, being a responsible driver and waiting until we got to a red light before I turned around to talk to her. "Now that I know Nora's still around… well, we've got some catching up to do. Hard to do that if she doesn't recognize me." she said, smiling over at me.I nodded, smiling right back as I headed for the office, getting the idea of going to Coco out of my head. " _If she wants to stay as she is, I say let her. She can take care of herself._ " I thought. Even if she couldn't, there was always me, Blake, Ren, and Nora to do it for her.

I drove up to the office, slowing down as I saw a police cruiser in the front. Maybe it was Pyrrha again? Though, this one seemed different. I'd told Velvet to open up shop today short before we left Mistral, but I didn't expect her _already_ here and waiting. "Is that miss Pyrrha?" Neo asked, popping her head up over Blake's seat. I looked back at her, trying to think of a suitable excuse for why she was in a sloth costume to tell Pyrrha. "You are wearing clothes beneath that right?" Blake asked, saving me the trouble. Neo just smiled, zipping down the back of her costume and stepping out, dressed exactly as we'd left her. She folded the costume over her shoulder as I parked, getting out. I opened the door for the two girls as Blake got out, already scanning the place with her hand on her gun. I didn't blame her, something was out of the ordinary, that was for sure.

When everyone was out and the car was locked, I walked up to the door, slowly pushing it open as I laid my hand in my jacket. I noticed a woman sitting on the stool, one long leg crossed over the other. She was facing me, her face set in a stern expression. She had the hair of a business woman, blonde pulled back into a bun with a curl on the right side. She had bright green eyes and wore short, ovular glasses. She was clad in a black skirt, likely the reason she was crossing her legs, and what looked like stockings, bleeding down into a pair of black heels. She had on a black jacket wrapped around what looked to be a white undershirt. She also had a belt on, with the familiar gun and mace can on the side. I didn't even have to look at her nametag to know who I was looking at.

"Glynda… haven't seen you in awhile." I said, giving her a slight nod. I knew better than to show too much emotion around the stone cold woman. She was decent looking sure, but she struck like a _viper_ when you showed weakness around her. The easiest way not to show weakness? Don't show any emotion at all. **(a/n- in other words, be like Ren!)** "Mr. Arc. I see you have company…" she said, looking over at Neo and May. May seemed suspicious, and since she ran with the Khan's in the past, I wasn't surprised. Neo, on the other hand, just smiled and waved at the woman. "Hi pretty lady!" she said, giving her the childlike smile I was expect from Neo. Glynda gave a little smile back before she turned back to me, wiping away all traces of a human being from her face, going back to that perfect business model. "Why're you here might I ask?" I said, looking behind her to see that Velvet wasn't at her station, where I'd expect. She was probably hiding if I was right.

She glared at me, her eyes boring into my soul as if to find weakness, but just like Blake, she would fail on the ground. "I've been trying to get into contact with you for _weeks_ Mr. Arc. I simply grew tired of being put off by that idiot of a secretary you have." she said, rolling her eyes slightly as she crossed her arms. I walked over to her as she stood up to her full height, which was maybe five inches taller than me. "I told you once Glynda, don't insult my friends. Do it again, you _will_ be escorted out." I said, giving her the most menacing glare I could. It wasn't really hard, I was genuinely angry when she called Velvet an idiot. Or that time she called Ren a bastard. You did _not_ insult my friends and expect no consequences, _especially_ not in front of me. She glared right back, but then she stepped past me, shoving past me with the walk of someone with better things to do with her time. "I'm passing along a message. Chief Ozpin has requested a meeting as soon as possible. When would be good for you?" she asked, looking over her shoulder.

"Tell him sometime tomorrow… now get out of my office." I said, glaring at her. She let out a little noise of discontent before she strided out, shoving past Blake and out the door. Blake glared at her retreating back before she walked over to me. "Who was the bitch?" May asked, glaring over her shoulder at the woman as she held her hands to Neo's ears, keeping her from hearing her swear. I sighed, "Glynda Goodwitch. Second in command of the VCPD. Right under Ozpin. If Pyrrha's Ozpin's left-hand, she's his right." I said, walking over to Velvet's station. I looked around, raising an eyebrow when I didn't see her anywhere. Normally she'd be somewhere nearby. "Velvet?" I asked, looking around.

"Is she gone yet?"

I looked down, frowning as I saw her sticking her head out from under her desk, her face cast in a frown and a fearful expression. I sighed, walking around and nodding as I helped her up from the floor. "Why were you under the desk Velvet?" I asked, though, I had a bad feeling I already knew the answer to that question. Sure enough, Velvet confirmed my suspicions when she looked away from me, leaning down slightly and pressing her index fingers together. "She kept yelling at me and calling me an idiot… then she called me an animal. I… I got scared so I hi beneath my desk and locked the door… I'm so glad you're back!" she said, leaning over and wrapping her arms around me. I lightly pat her back for a few seconds before she let go, and I just gave her a concerned look. "Are you okay?" I asked.

She nodded, smiling at me, "Yeah… I just don't like being called an animal in front of my daughter…" she said, looking back towards the desk. Sure enough, Ton-Ton stepped out, her own eyes having dried tear trails down them. I felt my fist clenching as I grit my teeth. "Oh that stuck up bitch…" I muttered, hopefully Ton-Ton wouldn't hear it. I would have to have a _serious_ word with Ozpin when I meet him tomorrow about that secretary of his. I looked over, seeing Ton-Ton walking over towards me. She looked up at her mother, sniffing slightly. "The mean ladies gone now, right mama?" she asked, a few new tears forming in her eyes. I leaned down, wrapping the young faunus in a hug as she hugged back. I picked her up, pulling back and smiling at her. "Don't worry Ton-Ton. Uncle Jaune scared her off just fine. She won't be back here for awhile." I said, trying to quell the burning anger I felt towards Glynda.

Ton-Ton smiled, rubbing against my shoulder for a second as I just moved my hand up, petting between her ears slightly as I started walking towards the stairs, everyone following me. I looked back, handing Ton-Ton to her mother as she walked back towards the entrance. I looked over at Neo. "Blake, May, give me and Neo some time. I'd like to discuss a few things." I said, looking down at the small child. She nodded, smiling up at me as she held out a hand. I took it, guiding her into my office before I shut the door, hearing May and Blake leaning up against the wall outside. I motioned to the chair in front of the desk before I walked over to my own, sitting down. Neo jumped onto the chair, scrambling a bit to find purchase. Never noticed how tall it was until now.

"You want to know about my dad right?" she asked, giving me a little frown. I had to stop myself from flinching back at her accurate intuition, but I managed, nodding towards her. She smiled, looking down at the ground. "My dad was Roman Torchwick. He was a criminal, but you knew that already right?" she asked. I nodded, motioning for her to continue with my hand. She did, "Yeah. He was a good dad, when he was my dad at least…" she said, letting out a little giggle. I raised an eyebrow, when he _was_ her dad? What the heck did that mean? "Before you ask, he and my uncle Ronald used to play pranks on me when I was younger. I could never tell them apart since, well, they looked just alike. They even _sounded_ the same. The only way I could tell was since uncle Ron didn't talk as much." she said, giggling at the end of it. I slowly nodded, useful information. So Torchwick had a twin huh? Maybe that was the body double. "Is Ronald still alive?" I asked.

Neo looked down at the ground, frowning. "Uncle Ron died a week before my dad." she said simply. I nodded sympathetically, grabbing my notebook and jotting down the information Neo had told me, most of it at least. When I was done, I nodded, asking her to go on with my eyes. She didn't disappoint. "My dad was kind of a flirt I guess. He'd bring home people and do… things I'm not supposed to know about, to them in his bedroom. It used to be different but, maybe a month before he died it was always the same person…" she said, frowning slightly as I saw her eyes both flash brown. Maybe that meant she was thinking about something? I jotted down the information. A ladies man that found his life-long lover? I doubted it, but maybe it was more than a one-night-stand kind of thing. "She had… black hair, I think. It might've been dark brown actually. She always wore this kind of red dress, and she'd have a white jacket over it… or maybe it was a white dress and red jacket?" she muttered, rubbing her chin in thought. I sighed, shaking my head as I looked up at her, giving her a tired look. "Neo, can you tell me anything you _know_ about this woman?" I asked. Neo nodded,

"She definitely had silver eyes."

My eyes widened a bit as I wrote that down, "Did you catch her name? How tall was she? How old?" I asked, readying my pen to write down a storm. Though, Neo just shook her head, scrunching up her eyebrows again as she scratched her chin, seemingly trying to think. "I think… she was a little shorter than my dad. She looked about his age though. I never caught her name. But every time she came over I always had to clean up these weird, white rose petals. Maybe she was a gardener?" she muttered, shrugging as she tried to come up with an explanation. I nodded, I'd say it was Ruby but, the bloody rose leaves behind _red_ rose petals, not white one's. Not to mention, Neo would _know_ if it was Ruby, since she was so much younger than her father. I looked toward her, "Is that all you can think of Neo?" I asked.

Neo nodded, looking down at the ground. "Sorry. I wasn't there when he got killed or anything… he made a lot of enemies, it could've been anyone." she said. I slowly nodded, an idea of where to go next forming in my head. I had to go see Ruby and give her Yang's locket later anyway, may as well talk with her mother about it. Of course I'd also have to play dumb, make sure she didn't realize I knew who her daughter was. "Thanks Neo, I think I've got all I need. You can… well, do whatever it is you do now I guess." I said. She nodded, smiling as she stood and walked out the door, right past Blake actually. She walked off to the right, towards the entrance. If I was right, she was probably going to go play with Ton-Ton. Blake walked in, and I felt a faint blush bubble up to the surface of my face as I remembered what almost happened before a drunk Nora and Ren interrupted us.

"Hey." she said, giving me a little smile as she sat down in the chair across from me. I nodded, giving her a smile in return as I flipped my notebook to the 'Gone Blonde' case. I wrote down that Yang was dead, and that I found her locket. If someone stole it to get information, I wanted them to at _least_ get the cover story, and not have any doubt that I thought Yang was dead. I set my notebook to the side as I looked up at Blake, placing my hands in steeples as I always did. "What can I do for you?" I asked, giving her a smile. She looked back over her shoulder, her eyes filled with anger. I had a bad feeling I knew what she was going to ask, so when she did, I wasn't all that surprised. "Does that lady call Velvet an animal a lot?" she asked.

"Every time she's over here. Before you ask, no, I can't stand her either." I said simply. She nodded, giving me a brief hint of a smile before going back to her normal, expressionless face. "Isn't she a police officer? How is she getting away with this?" she asked. I could tell she was angry at the woman. Hell, so was I. She insulted _my_ friends and then had the nerve to order me around like I was _her_ employee. "She's second in command, as I said before. The only one over her head is Ozpin. Everywhere she goes she expects people to bend to her every whim… hehe, probably why she doesn't like me." I said, leaning back in my chair as I moved my hands over to the sides. Any other honest citizen in Vale? Sure, they'd buckle under. But me and Ren? Oh we'd sooner shoot up the entire police department than just _give_ _in_.

"I can tell. So… what're you planning to do about Yang?" she asked, quickly changing the subject. I could tell from the look in her eyes that it was bothering her, and it probably had been for awhile. I sighed, "I'm calling Ruby, I'll show her the locket and tell her I found Yang dead. Then, I'm considering it case closed. I'm… going to _try_ and not get more involved than that." I said, looking down at my desk. I was a detective, not a vigilante. I didn't want to 'declare war' on the Rose family, it would just get me killed. I just wanted to do what I did best. Solve crimes with Ren… and maybe Blake I guess. "Say, Blake… what're you planning to do? After this is… well, all said and done?" I asked, my eyes burning with curiosity. She looked down at the floor, her eyes flashing with something I almost didn't recognize. Indecision. I didn't know what it was, but she was trying to decide something. She looked back up at me after a moment, and I guess she'd figured it out.

"I want to stay with you… and the others too of course." she said, adding that last phrase quickly as a blush tainted her cheeks. I smiled at her, my own face slightly heating up to match hers. I wasn't really sure why, but there it was. "And I wouldn't have it any other way." I said, sitting upright and laying my hands on the table. Blake mirrored my own smile, but after a moment she dropped it, looking at the ground as I saw guilt flash across her face.

"Well… I wouldn't be able to pa-"

"I don't care about money Blake."

Her eyes widened as she looked up, and I saw her bow shoot upright, I guess I really did surprise her. "Wait, what?" she asked, blinking a few times as she rubbed a finger in her ear, likely making sure she hadn't misheard me. I just repeated the same sentence as before. She looked like she couldn't believe her ears, her eyes wide as I just stood, walking over and laying a hand on her shoulder. "I don't mind you staying here Blake… I like having you here." I said, feeling my own face heating up to a light red. Her face mirrored mine as she stood, taking my hand in hers as she moved it between us. "Jaune… earlier, when we were in front of Nora's apartment…" she stopped, her face blushing bright red as she did so. I smiled, my own face mirroring hers as I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her into a hug. "I meant what I said Blake." I said simply.

I felt her wrap her arms around me as well, melting into the hug. I could hear the smile in her voice as she spoke, "If you were anyone else I'd have punched you right then and there." she said, pulling back as I saw her smiling at me. I smiled right back, feeling heat creeping up my face at our close proximity. "I guess lady luck finally got bored of screwing me over." I said. Blake giggled, leaning against my shoulder as I felt her head rubbing against my chest. She looked up after a moment, "You're so different than anyone else I've ever met… I'm not sure I'm willing to let that go yet…" she said, leaning up closer. I smiled as I leaned down, setting my hat off on my desk before I spoke, slowly trailing my hands up from her lower back to her stomach. "You're not like anyone I've ever met either… I don't want… whatever this is, to be over. Not yet." I said, leaning in closer.

"You know… you've got a really pretty smile. It's a shame you don't show it more often." I said, leaning closer towards her. She giggled as she leaned closer, sparkling amber eyes meeting my own blue one's. I could see every detail of her face, from the way her shadowed hair framed her pale face, even right down to her long eyelashes. I was close enough I could almost count them. They almost looked like they'd get tangled up in each other if she just blinked. We both leaned closer, "Are you… about to give me a reason to smile Jaune?" she asked, leaning close to me. I could feel her breath on my lips, and both our faces were burning bright red at this point. I leaned closer, as close as we were not a few hours ago. "Yeah… I am." I said.

"Jau… am I interrupting something?"

I looked over, pulling Blake slightly closer as I saw, strangely, Pyrrha standing there. She was dressed just like last time, only now she had her gun drawn in her hand. She must've been aiming in at us, since her gun was only just now going down to the floor. I sighed, "Yeah, you kinda were." I muttered. The _second_ time today I'd been only a few seconds from kissing Blake that someone had interrupted us. Blake's face burned bright red as she stepped back, looking up at me. "Uh, who's this Jaune?" she asked, looking over at Pyrrha. She no doubt noticed the police uniform first, as I saw her hand slowly reaching for the gun at her hip. I sighed, looking over at Pyrrha as I stepped out of Blake's embrace. "Blake, this is Pyrrha Nikos, captain of the VCPD. Pyrrha, this is Blake Belladonna. She's a… friend of mine." I said, struggling for a second to come up with the right word.

Pyrrha nodded, holstering her gun and smiling at Blake, holding out a hand. I saw the two shake hands, but I noticed that Blake had moved her hand back a bit, gripping at Pyrrha's knuckles rather than her hand. When I noticed Pyrrha trying to squeeze her hand together, I figured out why. The two locked eyes, but even Ton-Ton could tell that their smiles were forced. When they stopped and stepped back, Blake looked at me, her eyes holding a spark of longing in them. "I'll see you around Jaune." she said. I had to hold back a sigh of disappointment as I saw her walk out the door, heading off to the left. So close… yet so far away. Pyrrha walked over to the chair Blake was sitting in not thirty seconds ago, and I walked back behind my desk. "Well Pyrrha… what can I do for you?" I asked, putting on a fake smile as I dealt with the annoyance I felt towards the police officers unintentional interruption.

"I was just making sure you, Ren, Blake, and May all got back from Mistral alright. I didn't want to be relying on you for a case and then you suddenly go missing right?" she said, giving me a little smile. I quickly stood up, drawing my revolver and aiming it at her head. "Move one inch I pull the trigger, got it?" I asked, glaring down at her as I felt my hitman instincts take over. She held up her hands, her eyes widening. "WOAH! What's gotten into you?!" she asked, her voice cracking with fear. I let my eyes trail along her body, looking for anything that was different from the Pyrrha from last time. "Take off the belt, drop it on the desk." I said. She stood up, slowly complying as she laid it down, holding up her hands as if in surrender. I could hear the nerves in her voice as she spoke, "You're not actually stripping me at gun point are you?" she asked.

I shook my head slightly, glaring at her. "Who are you?" I asked. She raised an eyebrow, opening her mouth to speak, a little more calm than she was two seconds ago when she thought I was about to rape her. "I'm Pyrrha Nikos, captain of the Vale city police department, who else would I be?" she asked, giving me a little smile, as if treating it like a joke. I glared at her, squinting slightly as I suddenly thought of something, a sure fire way to know if this was really Pyrrha. "Where's Neo?" I asked simply. If she were Pyrrha, she'd assume that Neo was still here somewhere, but if she _wasn't_ … "I don't know." she said simply. I grabbed her handcuffs from her belt, lunging over the table and knocking her to the ground. I set down my gun and pinned her hands above her head, quickly handcuffing her and grabbing the gun. I stood, aiming down at her. "Jaune?! What's wrong?!" I heard Blake ask, barging through the door.

"Call the police, and tell them we have an impostor on our hands." I said, forcing 'Pyrrha's' hands behind her back as I undid the handcuffs, locking her in place to the chair. She looked back at Blake, her eyes pleading. "You have to help me! He's gone mad! I AM PYRRHA NIKOS!" she yelled. I tapped her forehead with the gun barrel, my eyes showing no emotion towards her. I knew she wasn't Pyrrha, the Neo comment was proof enough. "Jaune, how do you know she isn't Pyrrha?" Blake asked, looking over at me. I smiled, she trusted me at least. I guess that was good for something. When I looked back down, I saw the woman struggling against her own handcuffs, trying to move. One jab to the forehead with a gun barrel stopped her in her tracks.

"Two things. She didn't know where Neo was, and she knew about May being with us."


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter sixteen: About time

 **(a/n- some light adult related content in this chapter, read at your own risk. Other than that, enjoy the fluf- chapter! I mean, enjoy the chapter!)**

I stared down at the impostor, keeping my gun aimed at her forehead, until she smirked. "No use hiding it huh?" she said, her voice shifting from the gentler voice of Pyrrha to a higher pitched, somewhat more cocky voice. I saw her stand up, her handcuffs spinning around her finger as she rushed towards me. I fired off a shot, only for her to knock me back over the desk, causing me to land behind it. When I looked up, I heard the familiar click, seeing one of the handcuff links locking my wrist to my desk. I grabbed said desk, gritting my teeth as I felt my foot connect to the woman's jaw. She staggered as I moved, swinging my other fist at her. Blake got involved to, pulling out her pistol and aiming at the woman. She grabbed Pyrrha's gun, and I nearly froze as I felt the gun barrel to my head.

"Move and your man gets it."

Blake froze, aiming up at the woman. I saw her eyes flash with hesitation, she wasn't going to pull the trigger. The woman masquerading as Pyrrha just smirked, keeping the gun aimed at me. "Drop the gun, kick it over." she said. Blake slowly complied, setting the gun on the floor before she stood, kicking it over to us. The woman bent down, picking up the gun and aiming it at Blake. "Now… which one of you should I kill first?" she said, smirking slightly as she aimed at both of us. "Me!" me and Blake both said, our eyes widening as we looked at each other. We'd both been thinking the same thing. " _If I die, maybe he/she can get out._ " The woman looked between us, a smirk curling onto her lips. She was enjoying herself, I didn't doubt that for a second. "How cute~ You both think dying will make the other safe. Better idea." I felt her press the gun harder against the back of my neck. I heard her cocking it. "You die first."

"Jaune!"

BANG!

I heard ringing in my ears as the woman staggered back, dropping both the guns and gripping at her right hand. I saw the gun falling to pieces, blown apart by the looks of it. Blake didn't waste time, rushing over and diving for her gun. The other woman recovered though, slamming her foot into the side of Blake's face just as she grabbed it. I reacted, moving around and swinging my foot, connecting with the impostor's stomach. The effect was what I expected, the wind knocked out of her. Unfortunately though, she managed to recover, dashing forwards and slamming her foot onto Blake's back. She jumped off of her, bracing herself as she shattered the window, disappearing in a screen of broken glass. " _Knew I should've sprung for the triple pane glass._ " I thought to myself as I saw the woman falling down into the streets below. I looked up, seeing Blake, sitting there, still aiming her gun out the window. I felt the ringing disappear as I moved around, looking up.

Standing at the door, holding a smoking rifle, was May. She smirked, holstering her rifle. "Still got it." she said, looking towards the window. I looked back at Blake, but all I saw was a blur of black as I felt her wrap her arms around me, forcing my head just above her chest. "Jaune! Are you okay?!" she asked, pulling back and looking down at me. I saw real concern in her eyes, one of the few times I'd seen _genuine_ emotion out of her. I reached a hand up, patting her upper back slightly as I smiled. "I'm fine Blake… man, that looks like it hurts…" I said, moving my hand up and, as gently as I could, laying it on her cheek, where a bit of blood was trickling down, as well as a dark bruise forming. She cringed away, but gave me a clearly fake smile. "It's not that bad." she said. I frowned up at her as I stood, leaning against my desk with one hand as I looked at Pyrrha's equipment belt.

Thankfully I saw the piece of metal I needed, and I grabbed out the keys to the cuffs, quickly unlocking them. I stood, looking over at May and smiling. "Nice shot." I said simply. May just shook her head, smirking slightly back at me. I had a feeling I knew what she was going to say. "Blowing apart someone's gun is _nothing_. I could make that shot in my sleep." she said, looking at me with, oddly enough, just confidence. I'd expected there to be arrogance in her voice, but no, she just knew her limitations, and she seemed to know them well. "I can't thank you enough." "I'm pretty sure _I'm_ the one that should be saying that." I said, smiling down at Blake. She looked up at me, her cheeks slightly flushed before she turned away, looking down at Pyrrha's belt. "Wonder where the real Pyrrha is?"

"I think I can answer that one."

I looked up, seeing Velvet standing in the door, her expression strangely shocked. Though, if I walked into a room and saw a pink haired girl holding a sniper rifle, and a cat faunus hugging my boss to her with a red face, I'd probably be a little shocked too. "There's something you need to see Jaune." she said, looking over at me. I nodded, grabbing Pyrrha's belt in one hand as I walked over there, Blake and May following behind me. When I walked outside, Velvet just pointed behind her. I looked over to, a slight blush creeping up on my confused expression. There was Pyrrha, no doubt it was her, clad in what looked to be bright red underwear. Her hands weren't bound, but she was simply sitting there, her legs spread slightly and her arms at her sides. She looked up, only moving above her neck. "You've got my belt." she said, giving me a little smile, her own face almost as red as her hair.

"Uh, why are you in your underwear… and lying in the hallway?" Blake asked, walking around to the side. Velvet looked over at us, shrugging slightly. "I walked over to the closet to get some wipes to clean my desk, she was just lying there… probably has been for awhile now." she said, considering the fact Velvet only cleaned her desk maybe three times a week. She kept it clean enough that's all she had to do. Pyrrha nodded, "It was just a few hours ago actually. I was winding down in my house after work when someone knocked on the door. I answered it but, the next thing I know I see a woman that looks just like me dressing in my police uniform. The only difference was she stuffed a lot of tissue paper in her bra." she said, her face burning slightly brighter at that fact. I nodded, so whoever did it had a smaller chest than Pyrrha, that narrowed it down to… almost every woman in Vale. Guess that doesn't help.

"Did she strip you down too?" May asked, looking over my shoulder. Pyrrha's face got a little brighter as she gave us a nervous giggle, shutting her eyes for a second. "Well uh… no. I was already like this when I got knocked out." she said. I raised an eyebrow, confusion obvious on my face. I had no doubt everyone else was thinking the same thing. I decided to voice our questions. "Wait, why?" I asked. Her face got even brighter as she looked away. I was rather surprised she wasn't covering as much of herself as she could at the moment. "I was… relaxing, after a long day of work. Let's uh… let's put it that way." she said, looking away from us. Blake and May seemed confused, though my face immediately lit up into a blush brighter than Pyrrha's hair. Considering I hung around with Nora and Ren so much, I had a good guess of what she meant. "What do you mea- ooooooh." Blake said, her face slowly turning redder as she came to the same conclusion I did.

"Umm, again, why are you still sitting there?" "Well… I can't actually move." Pyrrha said, answering my question as she gave me another nervous smile. I looked over at Velvet, who was slowly nodding, as if confirming something to herself. "That would explain why you don't have any binds. No cuffs, no zip-ties, no gag, nothing." I said. Though, the last one didn't make as much sense. Maybe she was just recovering from whatever had (hopefully) temporarily paralyzed her. " _If only Ren were here, maybe he'd know what it was and have a cure for her._ " I thought to myself. The only times I ever _really_ needed him around, he was off having drunk sex with Nora. Par for the course when working with him I guess. "Well, it seems to be wearing off. I don't think we can do much other than let it run it's course." I said. It didn't _seem_ lethal, so hopefully it would leave her system soon enough.

Pyrrha just sighed, "Great… so I'm stuck paralyzed in my underwear until this wears off." she said, looking away from us as I saw her blush get stronger. May just shrugged, smirking over at the young police captain. "Could be worse, she could've stripped you naked and stuffed you in a bear." she said. Me and Blake both smiled, but Pyrrha and Velvet just got the most confused looks on their faces. I walked over to Pyrrha, getting down on one knee and smiling at her. "Should probably get you out of the hallway… in case anyone decides to show up." I said. Pyrrha just nodded, looking over at Blake and May, then at Velvet. She just sighed, looking away and shutting her eyes. "Mind carrying me?" she asked. I just nodded, reaching down and scooping her up in my arms, bridal style like I normally did anyone I was carrying.

Blake followed me as I carried her up the stairs, her blushing all the while. I just took her into the room next to Blake's, laying her on the bed. "You should be okay until the poison wears off." I said, nodding down towards her. She just nodded back, looking ahead of her with a bored expression. She would likely be bored out of her mind until she could move again, but hey, it was better than being dead. I walked out, shutting the door and grabbing Blake's hand, looking at her cheek with a frown. "You uh, want me to look at that?" I asked, gesturing towards her cheek. Blake looked like she was about to refuse, but then just nodded. Either she was getting over her embarrassment, or she was just admitting to herself that it actually hurt. I guided her into the room across from us, Ren had reserved as an area to treat injuries. Velvet ended up in there more often than I'd like to admit, mostly due to clumsiness thankfully.

I guided Blake inside, shutting the door as I looked in. It was like most of the other apartments considering it had a bed and it was about the same dimensions. Though, where it _wasn't_ like in the other apartments, was the shelves of ingredients and small jars, most of which I didn't know the use of, as well as other sorts of surgical implements, as well as simple bandages, towels, and ice packs in and around the small fridge. "Sit on the bed, I'll see what I can do." I said. I saw Blake's face turn slightly red, but she complied, walking over to the bed and sitting down. Meanwhile, I walked over to the familiar black notebook on the table, one of Ren's journal's. Now, as an Arc I was trained in fixing up minor wounds, setting bones and all that. But a kick to the face? I wasn't really sure what to do for it. "Is there anywhere else it hurts or, just your face?" I asked.

"Well, she did stomp on my back pretty hard… it kind of hurts to walk." she said, frowning as she gingerly rubbed it, wincing all the while. She was trying to downplay it, but I could tell she was in a lot of pain. I rushed through the ointments Ren had showed me, as well as the one's in the notebook, until I found it. Something he called Aloe Vera. Mostly used for burn wounds, but it was also supposed to help swelling and sometimes pain. I grabbed it out from the fridge, as Ren liked to chill his for some reason, and quickly dabbed out a bit of it onto my palm, looking over at Blake. "Hold still, this may be a bit cold." I said, moving my hand towards her cheek. She shut her eyes, bracing herself for some kind of impact. Instead though, what I got was a sigh of relief as I rubbed it around. "Better…" she said, showing her cat faunus nature once again by rubbing into my hand, nearly purring.

When I took my hand away, it was my faces turn to go bright red. "Umm… I need to do the same with your back… if it hurts the same way." I said. Blake's eyes widened, her face matching mine as she slowly nodded, standing up. She reached back, her eyes widening as I saw her blush get deeper. "Umm, t-turn around for a second, okay?" she asked. I raised an eyebrow, but complied anyway, slowly turning around. I heard her take off the denim jacket, as well as the top. Strangely, I heard more movement as well. After a second, I heard it stop, and a meek noise telling me to move around. When I turned, I felt my face suddenly resemble Pyrrha's hair. Blake was sitting there, her face pressing into the pillow on the mattress, in only her underwear. There wasn't even a strap for her bra either, the only clothing she had on being the pair of black panties. "Huh?!" I said, looking down as I nearly dropped the jar.

I could hear the nerves in Blake's voice as she spoke. "Just… hurry up so I can put my clothes back on. I gave May my clean one okay!" she said, no doubt referring to the fact that May had had to borrow some of Blake's clothes when we left Mistral. I gulped, slowly nodding as I shakily set the jar down. I got a fair bit of the ointment on my fingers as I slowly reached down, "This uh… this may be a little, um, cold…" I said somewhat quietly. I knew I sounded awkward, but hell in this situation I figured it was warranted. Blake just nodded, and I reached down. I heard a sharp intake of breath come from her, but not a complaint. I moved it slowly around her back, not really knowing where it hurt. I just applied it across her lower back and even hitting her hip. She let out another sigh of relief, but considering the circumstances, this one sounded _much_ worse than the last.

After a few seconds I stopped, but then I looked down at her back. It was strange, a scar by the looks of it. It seemed to be the only one, near the side of her hip. It looked almost like a bullet wound. I gingerly touched it with my finger. "OW!" I heard Blake yell, her nearly jumping up as I fell backwards, falling to the floor from the sudden imbalance. I rubbed the back of my head slightly, "Jaune! Are you alright?" she asked. I opened my eyes, about to answer, when I suddenly froze, my mouth hanging open slightly. I looked up, seeing that I'd apparently taken Blake with me, as both her hands were to the sides of my head. I looked up, trying to keep my eyes on her face, and not on her bare breasts that were freely exposed not a few inches away. "Yeah… Um, Blake?" I said, nodding down towards her chest. She looked towards it, her face suddenly matching mine as she stood, sitting on the bed and grabbing the blanket, pulling it almost up to her chin.

"Where'd you get that scar?" I asked, standing up and looking over at her. She looked back up at me, then she turned around, facing the wall as I saw her exposing her back to me. "I got it from Adam during a… disagreement of ours." "Blake, it's a _bullet_ wound. What did he shoot you because he disagreed with you?" I asked, concern flashing across my face. What kind of human, no what kind of _anything_ would shoot someone just because of a disagreement? Seriously? "That wasn't the worst thing he did, it's just the only mark that hasn't healed yet." she said, lightly wincing when she touched it. I knew there was nothing for it, it was a scar, and unless Ren was here I doubt there was much I could do for it on my own. "I want to do something to help you but, for a scar… I can't even begin…" I said, letting my eyes fall to her scar. This time I slowly moved my hand over it, spreading some of the Aloe Vera onto it. She sighed, "That doesn't help really… some wounds just never heal." she said, frowning down at the ground in front of her.

I moved up, gently wrapping my arms around Blake's stomach, not wanting to accidentally touch her breasts, as I leaned closer. "Blake… I understand. You're just like I was… Adam broke you didn't he?" I said, gently setting my chin on her shoulder. I heard what may have been a gasp or a hiccup from Blake. Though, when she turned her head to look at me, her eyes were swimming with tears. "How… how did you-" "Because my mother did the same thing to me. My body, my mind, my soul, all broken and twisted almost beyond recognition and then built back up in a way that better suited the clan. I was heartless, remorseless… powerless. So believe me when I tell you that you can heal. Maybe not to what you were before, but you can _heal_ Blake." I said. Blake's eyes were getting wider and wider, and I don't think either of us cared much for her nudity at the moment.

"You don't understand. In that room he-" "Chained you up? Whipped you until your back bled? Fed you non-lethal poisons while forcing you to insult yourself if you wanted even the slightest bit of food?" I said, giving a little smile. She blinked a few times, moving back away from me slightly. I just pulled her closer, turning sideways, and laying my head on the base of her neck. "Blake if there's anyone that knows what being broken is like, it's me. They may all have different methods, but the people that do it all want the same thing. They want you to think they've won, they want you to think they're invincible. They want you to think that you can never heal. If you believe you can never recover from what he did to you, you're right. You may as well give up." I said. Her ears dropped at that, I hadn't notice her drop her bow earlier. I held up a finger, pulling back out of the hug. "But if you believe that you _can_ recover, then you're right. The problem isn't _if_ you can heal Blake, it's if you _will_ heal." I said, smiling at her.

I saw a flash of white as Blake dropped the blanket, moving around and wrapping her arms around my back, burying her head in my shoulder. I could hear her faint cries as I just wrapped my arms around her, feeling the cold from the drying Aloe Vera on my hands as I heard Blake speak. "How do I heal? Please… I want to heal, I just… I don't know how." she said, pulling back and looking up at me. I smiled at her, moving my hands up and cupping her face in them. I used my thumbs to wipe away at the tears on her face, smiling at her all the while. "It's not easy, nothing worth doing ever is. It took me years to, even now I'm not done. Having people close… having friends or a good family… it really helps." I said. Blake's tears seemed to stop as I felt her squeeze me to her tighter, smiling at me. I saw her face burn slightly as she moved slightly past my hands, leaning towards me. I leaned closer, our eyes meeting again. "Is this going to happen again? We get so close and then somethin-"

Rather than us being interrupted, I interrupted her, by pressing my lips against hers. Her eyes widened, but then they shut, and I shut mine as well, feeling my heart thundering in my chest. Unless I counted Velvet's little 'incident' a few years back, I was having my first kiss with Blake, while she was on a bed, mostly nude at that. I ignored it, moving my hands up, one tangling in her hair as I kept the other on her back. I felt her take my hat off with one hand, likely tossing it somewhere. I really didn't care, I just focused on Blake. She was a good kisser, no question of that much. I tugged on her hair slightly, letting my instincts guide me for a change. Although, it had to end eventually. I felt a burning in my lungs as I strained to keep our lips connected… but I knew it was a losing fight. The two of us pulled back, both panting as we gazed at one another, our faces bright red.

"You taste like smoke…" "You taste like fish…" I responded, smiling down at her as I tried to regain my breath. She smiled right back, and we just sat there for a moment, our arms wrapped around each other. "When did you first want to kiss me?" me and Blake both said in unison, our eyes widening before we smiled back at each other. Blake held up a hand, nodding slightly as she spoke. "After that night at the hotel, in Mistral. I was tempted to kiss you right when we woke up." she said, smiling up at me. I just nodded, the first time I ever saw her show some _real_ emotion around me, other than annoyance that is. I took a breath, calming myself as I prepared my answer. "Well… when we first met, in the bar." I said, looking away from her. Blake's eyes widened a bit, her face tinting brighter red before she smiled, leaning up against me again. "Why didn't you just ask?" she said.

"You're way out of my league. You're one of the prettiest girls I've ever seen, I didn't think you'd go out with someone like me." I said, looking away from her. I felt a hand on my chin as I was pulled back towards her. I looked down, feeling reality come crashing in around us as my face went bright red again, and I became _very_ aware of the two pressures against my own chest. "Blake… you're still topless." I said. Her face tinted red, but oddly enough, she didn't pull away. Instead, she pulled me _closer_ to her, pressing most of her body against me. She looked up, our faces inches from each other. "Well, if they're against you, you can't see them, can you?" she said, smirking slightly at me. I felt blood rushing to my face and, obviously, other places. I could tell she was enjoying herself, and I was kind of glad for it. Considering what she'd been through… hell, what _we'd_ been through, I think she deserved to have some fun once in awhile.

"Hey Blake… when we get this whole case with Yang sorted out and, I work a bit on some other cases… how about we go out? Just you and me?" I asked. Blake just sighed, a small smile on her face as she slowly shook her head. I frowned, thinking she was saying no, but then she spoke. "Leave it to you to ask me on a date when I'm topless on a bed." she said. We laughed at that, and when I stopped, I just listened to her. I'd never given it much thought, but her laugh… god it was pretty. It was almost like listening to a song. When she stopped, she reached a hand up, lightly twirling her finger in her hair. "Oh, and I'd _love_ to go out with you Jaune. But, on one condition." she said, holding up that one finger that was playing with her hair. I raised an eyebrow, "What?" I asked.

Blake smiled at me, pulling back as I looked away, seeing her move down out of the corner of my eye. I felt a pressure on my lap as I looked down, seeing Blake's legs curling up behind her, her head placed in my lap and her chest pressed against my leg. "You pet me." she said, smirking up at me. I just sighed, moving my left hand over her ears. The effect was instant, Blake purring as she shut her eyes, acting almost like a cat again as she moved around, rolling her head around on my lap. I just smiled, enjoying the feeling of her soft ears and hair beneath my hand as I grabbed the Aloe with my other hand. I saw Blake seem to shiver a little as I laid my hand against her lower back, slowly moving the cream around to try and sooth her bruise. It wasn't hard to see where it hurt, considering it was leaving quite a large purple marking on her. We kept this up for awhile, Blake purring against me as I rubbed her ears, only for her to suddenly gasp. "Why did you… oh, right." Blake said, looking back with a red face as she noticed the tips of my fingers beneath the waistband of her panties, still following the bruise she'd received. "Sorry, I can't really see where the bruise ends." I said, giving her a sheepish smile.

"Then take them off."

I felt my face explode into blush as I looked down at her, finding that her own face was the same way. "What?!" "Not all the way! Just… slip them down enough you can see the edge of the bruise." she said, looking away from me likely trying to hide her blush. I just slowly nodded, looking over and carefully pulling her panties down, just enough that I could see a little soft and unblemished skin beneath the darkened bruised skin. I moved my hand around, making sure they would stay, before I grabbed more of the Aloe, rubbing it along her bruise as she sighed. "My ears Jaune?" "Right, right." I said, petting her again. She smiled, going back to purring as I rubbed along her ears. I smiled right back, watching her rolling her head around my lap and rub against my hand almost like a real cat. When I looked back at her back, I noticed that her bruise _had_ faded slightly… at least, the inflammation had seemed to go down anyway.

It was maybe thirty minutes later when I felt Blake move, letting out a yawn as she stretched her legs out a bit, looking up at me. "What time is it?" she asked, looking out the window, thankfully that still had the curtains drawn, and seeing no sunlight coming in. I looked above the door, my eyes widening a bit as I saw both hands near the nine. "It's almost ten o'clock. We should uh… probably be heading to bed soon." I said, looking down at Blake. She looked up at me, her eyes saddened as I felt her ears droop down beneath my hand. Then she smiled, leaning up and pressing her body against my side. "Then let's head to bed… how about you stay with me?" she asked, smirking once she saw my face turning slightly red. I just slowly nodded, still finding it hard to believe that the gorgeous black haired bombshell was asking me to sleep with her… okay maybe it was in _that_ way but still, it was happening… again.

I just stood up, feeling a breeze on my arms as I looked back, seeing Blake holding my trenchcoat up to her, smiling slightly at me as I turned around, laying my katana, the _real_ crocea mors, on the counter. I heard what sounded like a gun being cocked as I slowly turned around, my eyes widening and my face burning at what I saw. Blake was sitting upright on the bed, my trenchcoat loosely draped over her shoulders, exposing a line down her chest, only a few inches from flashing her breasts to me. In her right hand she had my gun, and my hat was on her head. She was smirking at me. "Go ahead, take it off." she purred, smiling at me as I complied, slipping my shirt over my head and laying it on the ground. I heard the bedsprings as I looked over my shoulder, seeing Blake stand up and walk over, casually holding the gun. I could see that it wasn't loaded, she wasn't _that_ stupid.

"Now the rest." she said again. I smirked as I looked away, reaching down and tossing my belt in front of me. I grabbed my katana, Blake freezing as I held it up, nearly shining in the light. I smirked at her, "'Give me my coat, princess. Perhaps I'll let you live~'" I purred back to Blake, causing her face to burn even brighter. That was more than likely since she knew what I was quoting. None other than her favorite novel, Ninja's of love. I'd be lying if I said I hadn't read them too, and that I'd always wondered how this scene would play out. Blake just smirked, laying the gun on the counter and reaching up, gripping the edges of the coat. "'But it is the only warmth I have! My flesh is bare beneath it.'" she said, smiling the entire time. I hadn't thought she'd actually follow through with it to be honest. I moved my blade back around, cupping her face with one hand as I moved forwards, our eyes meeting. "'Then I shall warm you, my beloved.'" I said.

Blake moved her hands up, and I shut my eyes as our lips met again, I just barely heard my coat fall to the floor as I ran my hands through her hair, trying to remember how the scene went next. I had no doubt Blake would go through with the whole thing if she could. Then again… I wasn't about to do _that_ with her in the room we reserved as a clinic. " _Rouge's tongue played against the lips of his beloved princess.'_ " I recalled from the novel. I blushed slightly as I did the same, not really expecting much. I felt my heart nearly stop when Blake's tongue met my own. That same, fishy taste was accented only by the small traces of smoke, even some milk within them. I forgot about the scene for a moment as our tongues fought for dominance, one she seemed to let me win. I let my tongue explore her mouth, and I flinched a bit when I ran it over her canines, they were _sharp_.

When air interrupted us again, I pulled back, keeping my eyes on Blake's face as I saw her own blush, her arms wrapping around my neck. "That was… wow." Blake said, dropping the scene as we went back to reality. I picked her up, spinning her around slightly as I laid us back down against the bed. I felt air on my legs as I looked back, seeing Blake's own legs moving around mine, pulling off my pants and kicking them back off of me, down to the base of the bed. "Woah… guessing that takes some skill." I said, looking back at Blake. She leaned against my chest, pulling up the blanket from above us and quickly waving it down to where it covered us. I felt Blake drape one of her legs over mine, her arms moving down around my waist as mine just stayed at her back. "I've had some practice… I haven't done that in awhile." she said, smiling up at me as she leaned in, pressing her lips against mine. It wasn't as long as our other two kisses, but there was just as much passion behind it. "'Shall we slumber, Rouge?'" she asked, pulling the scene thing on me again. Instead of responding with 'Our night is just beginning my princess', I did something a bit different. I kissed her forehead, pulling her closer as I laid my chin between her ears.

"Yes, we shall. My little kitten."

~~~ **\- For anyone wondering this means POV changes from now on.**

I watched as Blake laid her head against Jaune's lap, asking him to pet her. I'd seen enough. I jumped back, landing on the roof as I pondered his words. " _You can heal Blake… I wonder…_ " I thought to myself, taking the red extensions out of my hair, revealing my own pale green mop in it's place. Jaune had been broken, Blake had been broken… they both seemed to be doing so much better than me and Mercury. " _Can we heal? No… we aren't like them. It's been happening my whole life, there isn't a chance._ " I thought as I walked over to the edge of the roof, walking down the fire escape as I suddenly shifted from the police captain of Vale to a random, green haired girl, with a bra that fit out over her… oh, wait. "I knew I forgot something." I muttered, reaching into my shirt and pulling out the wads of tissue paper I'd had to stuff into Pyrrha's bra to make it fit me. When I was done, I pushed the bra down, smiling as it fit into my shirt again. I stepped down from the stairs and started walking out of the alley, where Mercury had his motorcycle waiting. "How stupid am I getting? We can't heal." I muttered. But now I had it, that spark of doubt in the back of my mind.

"Can we?"

 **(a/n- this may shock some of you but I hadn't even** _ **intended**_ **this story to be a Nightshade fic in the first place. Originally I'd planned for this to be… well I hadn't gotten that far yet, but the Nightshade thing just sort of happened on it's own. I didn't even realize it until I read a review saying, Ehhehem (terrible clearing throat sound effect-**

 **Anyways (Squeeeeeeee!) loved the chapter it was so good! Man I am shipping Knightshade so hard it physically hurts! I need to bite my finger to stop from giggling like a little girl, it's just so well done!**

 **Until I read** _ **that**_ **bit of the review (You can pretty easily find out who wrote this one), I hadn't even really thought of Nightshade being a pairing… or there really being any pairing besides Renora (come on, it's too cute** _ **not**_ **to ship and it's basically the only** _ **canon**_ **pairing we have… at least where both are… no! No feels here!) but then I realized… huh, it actually** _ **does**_ **work really well with this. And now… here we are. Also, for anyone wonder, the Rouge and princess thing… I just got on wordreference and looked up the color red in french. Figured Jaune was yellow in french so, hey, if he's going to pretend to be him for a second why not make their names come from the same language. Anyway, that's all for this chapter. See you on the next one!)**


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter seventeen: Roses and romance

"Are you okay Miss Rose?"

I groggily opened my eyes, my head was spinning, my arm stung, my back was on fire, everything hurt. I blinked a few times, clearing up the blur in my vision before I saw the familiar man standing there. The vibrant green hair that seemed to spike in every direction and the dirty glasses that were borderline opaque were evidence enough for me to figure out who it was. Even then, the askew tie and what looked to be lab coat also made it clear. "Fine." I said, keeping my voice emotionless as I sat up, standing, only to feel a grip on my arm as I felt my legs giving out beneath me. I heard the quick clicking of the doctor's tongue. "Oh nonononono! You _must_ rest Miss Rose, you have lost approximately 5.43578219 pints of blood! Honestly it's a miracle you're even _alive_ with the amount you've been losing! You've lost over twenty pints of blood in the last month _alone_ miss Rose! If you do not at the very _least_ slow down you _will_ be at risk for death."

"I don't care."

I glared at the doctor as he flinched back, lowering his glasses and cleaning out his ears. "I'm sorry, did you just-" "I said I. Don't. Care." I said, not bothering to show any emotion to him. He didn't care if I lived or died, not really, he only cared that my mother kept signing his paycheck to treat me… and to keep quiet about _why_ I kept losing blood. He frowned towards me, putting on a… different saddened expression than normal. Usually it was just the practiced one's that almost all doctors had, but this one was… different. "Why don't you care… Ruby?" he said, speaking _a lot_ slower than normal. He was speaking like a hummingbird the rest of the time, even earlier… but now he was speaking like dad used to… or even Uncle Qrow. I shook my head, letting him help me back onto the bed as I clasped my hands, seeing the bandages on the sides of my arm. I didn't pick at them, Oobleck hated when I did that, but I did stare at them. "It's never enough… I must be perfect, I cannot be perfect… can you do me a favor?" I asked, giving him my best puppy-dog eyes, the one's I learned from our pet dog years ago, Zwei, before… well, I don't really know what happened to him actually. "What?" Oobleck asked.

"Could you please kill me?"

He flinched back, his eyes wide as I stared at him, hoping against hope he would accept. We stayed there in silence for awhile, but eventually, one of us had to break it. "Why?" turned out it was him. I frowned towards the ground as I clasped my hands. I let my shell break, just a little bit, as I felt fear enter my voice. "I'm… scared. Everytime I look in a mirror… I'm _terrified_ of what I'm going to see on the other side. I want to be perfect for mama, I want to be her little angel, I want to be the Bloody Rose… but I still want to be Ruby Rose. I just… sometimes I wish I could go back, before all this. I wish that I could just stay alongside Yang and, grow up being the adorable, awkward little girl she kept asking what happened to… I think she had the right idea." I said, and I saw them hitting my hands, the droplets of water. I ignored them, it was the only time I would get to cry when someone wasn't watching. Oobleck wouldn't care, he didn't care if I cried, I was in pain, it's what I was _supposed_ to do in his eyes.

"I'm not a dummy… there's no going back after everything I've done." I said, looking down between my feet as I saw more of my tears drip down my chin, landing down there. I didn't care, let them. "One thousand." I whispered. Oobleck raised an eyebrow, "One thousand, nine-hundred, seventy-five. That's how many lives I've ruined, and I've only ended a few hundred of them." I said, gritting my teeth as I felt the familiar flash of guilt pass through me. With it, came the pain of a blade to my rear, and I nearly unconsciously reached my hand back, as if expecting to feel blood. Mama stopped cutting me years ago though, so I was scared for no reason of that. "It wouldn't be heard. Give me the wrong syringe, too much adrenaline, make me overdose, suffocate me while I'm sleeping, slit my throat with your scalpel. Please." I said, outright _begging_ the man that this point. I wanted to die, I knew that for a long time… this wasn't the first time I'd asked him to do so. It was only the second, and he was still shocked.

His response was predictable, "You know I can't do that Ruby. I signed the Hippocratic oath, and you know-" "'The number one rule is above all else, do no harm', yeah yeah you've told me before." I said, laying my chin in my hands as I glared towards him. He had the nerve to outright refuse me, _me_ , the bloody rose, the most feared woman (other than mama) in all of Vale, possibly all of Remnant. Yet he did it without hesitation. That's why I liked him, no, that's why I _respected_ him. He did what was right no matter the consequence to himself… " _I like it because it's how I should be… isn't the old person supposed to live their life through the young person and not the other way around?_ " I thought to myself as Oobleck walked over, grabbing a nightgown and tossing it towards me. I stood again, tossing the nightgown to the side, I was already naked anyway.

"You don't plan on covering up Ruby?" he asked. I shook my head, he knew I'd say no. Why should I cover up? He'd operated on me, given me shots, done my physicals, done any surgery or looked over any part of my body that ever ached. When it came to him and my body, there were no secrets. "You've seen me like this a thousand times doc, why's today different?" I asked. He shook his head, he had no reason for it. Other than the inherent chivalry he must've possessed, not wanting to be considered rude… then again, he was a doctor, he must've seen a thousand naked people before me, and he'd probably see a thousand after. "Because normally you don't have guests." I heard a familiar voice say. I smiled as I looked up, nodding towards the man across from me, leaning against the door frame with his arms crossed. The messy black hair, crooked cross necklace, and most of all, the red eyes gave away who it was.

"Hey uncle Qrow!" I said, giving him a wave with my un-bandaged hand. He gave me a nod, smiling at me as I quickly grabbed the gown, pulling it on over me as to cover up slightly. Being my uncle, he'd seen me plenty of times when I was young, but he did make a point. That and, frankly, I respected very few people in this world. Some a little, and some a lot. Qrow? I respected him _a lot_. "Hey kiddo. Come on, someone's downstairs asking for you, Jaune something… you finally snag a man?" he said, giving me a little smirk. I didn't blush at the response, being as I harbored feelings for only one person in remnant, and it _certainly_ wasn't Jaune, but I looked away anyway. "I asked him to help me find Yang… do you think he found her?!" I asked, letting my eagerness disguise my fear. If he found Yang, I'd have to kill her… I couldn't say I missed twice, Mama would know. She was smart like that. Qrow just shrugged,

"Maybe he did… who knows?"

I groggily opened my eyes, blinking a few times to clear my vision. When it was clear, I felt my face heat up slightly. I saw Blake, her head of black hair just beneath me, her cat ears flicking along the top of her head. I looked down, blushing slightly when I saw her bare back, dipping down beneath the covers slightly, said covers being around our waists. I just smiled down at her as I left my arms where they were, wrapped around her, and I just looked back at the clock. " _It's already almost ten o'clock? Woah…_ " I thought to myself as I looked down. We needed to get up soon anyway. I smirked slightly as I got an idea, leaning down. I slightly opened my mouth, nibbling gently on one of Blake's cat ears. She let out a little moan, her face shifting into a smile, "You're so bad~" she said, squirming around a bit as I held onto her. A few seconds later, she opened her eyes, looking up at me and giving a small smile, her face burning as red as mine was.

"Hey." "Hey." I repeated, keeping a small smile on my face as I looked down at her, amber eyes meeting blue one's once again. She leaned up, gently pressing her lips against my cheek. "Sleep well? I know I did~" Blake said, smirking up at me as I felt her leg wrap tighter around one of mine. I chuckled as I leaned down, kissing her cheek as well. When I pulled back, I gave her the same smirk she had on her face, "How wouldn't I sleep well with such a beautiful woman at my side~" I said, causing her face to burn slightly red. She nuzzled against my chest, laying her chin on it as she looked up. I moved my hand, reaching up and gently petting her as she purred, rolling her head around my chest as I felt her arms move up, wrapping around my back.

"What have we here?"

I felt my face pale as I slowly turn, my face exploding into blush as I saw Velvet standing there, likely just coming in for work. I could tell she was just coming in for work mostly due to the carrot in her left hand and the coffee mug in her right. She had a little smile directed at me and Blake as Blake looked over my shoulder, her face resembling mine not a second later. "How long have you been-" "I just got here. I came in to get a band-aid for Ton-Ton and I find you two with your clothes on the floor." she said, gesturing down towards my clothes, as well as Blake's top and skirt. Velvet just walked in, my eyes following her as I saw her grab a package of band aids, picking one out as she spoke. "I'm glad I didn't bring Ton-Ton up here, I don't want my daughter seeing you two going at it in the clinic." she said with a little giggle at the end, causing me to freeze up and Blake to bury her head into my chest. If the warmth was anything to go by, her face was bright red.

Velvet just left the room, shutting the door a second later. I moved my arms, pulling back from Blake, "We uh, should probably get up before someone else walks in." I said, looking over at the door Velvet had just shut. Blake just nodded, pulling her leg out from back around me. I moved around, slipping my legs out over the bedside and standing up, stretching slightly. I looked back at Blake, finding her smiling. "Don't mind me, just enjoying the view." she said, causing me to blush a bit more. I turned, walking over and actually _locking_ the door this time, didn't want anyone else to interrupt, before I walked over and grabbed my pants and shirt, quickly pulling them on. I looked over, my face burning before I turned, seeing Blake stepping out of bed, still topless. I heard Blake giggle as well as the sounds of what I guessed was her putting her clothes on. "So pure and innocent…" I heard her mutter.

I decided against bringing it up as I reached down, grabbing my coat and pulling it on, taking my katana and gun, laying them back inside said coat before I walked over to the window, slightly pulling back the curtain, enough to see outside. It was raining, nothing out of the ordinary there, there were still people walking around the streets like always. I just stared for a few minutes before I nearly jumped out of my skin, feeling two arms slink around my waist. I turned my head, seeing Blake laying her chin on the base of my neck. I felt a sudden pressure on my head as I looked up, seeing the brim of my hat. "Forget something?" she said, smiling up at me. I smiled back, turning around and wrapping my arms around her as well. She leaned up, and I leaned down, meeting her in a kiss like we had last night. When I pulled back, I looked towards the door, "We should go before Velvet comes up, get ready for the day and everything." I said. Blake sighed, letting go of me before she started walking away, right before she flung something back at me.

I caught it, blushing bright red when I looked down, seeing a pair of black panties. "A little reminder." she said, winking at me as she turned around, flipping her hair back over her shoulder as she walked out of the room, not so subtly flipping the back of her skirt up. I looked away, naturally, and when I looked back, the door was closed. I sighed as I looked down, my blush deepening as I understood just what Blake meant when she said a little reminder. While I was no expert on female undergarments, I was _fairly_ certain that none of them had a large, darker stain on the front by design. I moved my hand down, walking towards the door and keeping Blake's… soiled, for lack of a better word, panties in my other hand, away from the door. I looked outside, seeing Velvet and Ton-Ton walking towards me, Ton-Ton with a little scrape on her knee, cutting into the small pair of overalls she was wearing as well. "Someone's been working in their garden I see?" I said, smiling down at Ton-Ton as I quickly shoved Blake's underwear in my inner trench-coat pocket.

She smiled up at me, tipping down the large-brimmed straw hat she was wearing. On close inspection, she even had a few flecks of dirt on her cheeks… she wasn't very clean like her mother I guess. She walked over to me, and I almost instinctively hugged her. "I didn't know you had a cat." Ton-Ton said, smiling up at me, though her expression was clearly confused. I met her with just as confused a gazed, then I looked up at Velvet, seeing her with a panicked expression and waving her arms in an X. "I don't… why did you think I did?" "Because you smell like one!" Was Ton-ton's reply. Velvet immediately face-palmed as I realized what she was trying to get at. Ton-Ton and, probably her mother too, could smell Blake on me. Being a little girl, I guess Ton-Ton didn't know the difference between an animal smell and a faunus smell. I just stood up, giving a nervous chuckle towards her as I was about to walk away, "Well, I'm not sure why that is." I said, rubbing a hand behind my head in what was likely the _most_ suspicious way I could do so.

Ton-Ton tilted her head a little, raising an eyebrow as she sniffed again, her nose doing that little, rabbit like twitch she and her mother both had. "Why does your coat smell so sweet?" she asked, pointing towards my trenchcoat, more specifically, the part that had Blake's panties in it. I fought to hold down a blush as Ton-Ton walked forwards, reaching a hand towards me. "What're you hiding in there?" "Ton-Ton, we need to get that knee treated, you've got a play date soon remember?" Velvet said, smiling at her daughter. Ton-Ton let out a little squeal as she rushed over to her mother, dashing in the clinic. I waited a second before breathing out a sigh of relief. Not a second later Velvet walked over and reached into my pocket, fishing out the soiled black panties. She looked at them for a second, holding them with her thumb and index finger a few inches from her. She looked at me, smirking slightly, "I didn't think you'd be one to put out on the first date." "IT'S NOT WHAT IT LOOKS LIKE!" I nearly yelled as I grabbed them, shoving them back in my pocket.

Velvet giggled as she turned around, walking towards the clinic. "Either way, I'm taking Ton-Ton and Neo out to the park for a playdate, I'll be back in time for us to open, don't worry." she said, looking over her shoulder. My eyes widened as I dashed over, gripping her shoulder, "Velvet have you gone _nuts_?! Neo's being hunted by a serial killer! She can't just go out in public like that!" "Don't worry about that, Neo! Come here!" Velvet replied, raising her voice a bit and looking towards Neo's room. My eyes widened as, instead of Neo, a little black haired girl walked out, her hair done in twin-pigtails that stretched down just a little beneath her shoulders. She yawned, looking over at us with big, green eyes. She was dressed in overalls too, only her's didn't have carrot buttons, but rather ice-cream one's, fittingly enough. " _That's_ Neo?" I asked, looking back at Velvet.

"I had a little help with her disguise." she said, gesturing behind me. I turned around and, sure enough, someone was standing there. The red hair gave it away pretty easily, even if the bright green eyes didn't. She was dressed in a large, brown sweater and black pants, her hair flowing around her shoulders instead of tied in a ponytail like normal. "Hello again!" Pyrrha said, smiling at me. I nodded as I, still disbelieving, looked back at Neo, seeing her walking over to us, leaning against the wall and humming slightly as she seemed to wait for Velvet, who had walked in the clinic, to finish treating Ton-Ton. "How did you-" "I used to work undercover, disguises are _everything_ in that field." Pyrrha said, smirking slightly with a sort of subtle confidence about her. I just nodded, leaning back slightly against the wall as I waited for Velvet and Ton-Ton to come out.

It was maybe three minutes later when the two of them walked out, me and Pyrrha leaning against one wall and Neo against the other. Neo took Ton-Ton's hand, giving her a smile as the two of them started walking off towards the stairs. I grabbed Velvet's hand before she could walk off. "Velvet. Are you three gonna be okay?" I asked, my expression turning more serious than before. Velvet stepped back a bit, but then nodded, smiling at me. I sighed as I leaned back, reaching into my jacket. I moved Velvet's hand, holding it palm out as I reached in, laying my revolver in her hands, loaded with six bullets. "Jaune… I can take care of them, and myself." "I know you can, but it… it gives me peace of mind alright? Be careful." I said. She took my gun, pulling her shirt out a bit and sticking it in the holster I knew she kept beneath her bra, the one she'd always had. She leaned in, wrapping her arms around me in an embrace. I returned it, smiling at her as we parted. I laid a hand on her shoulder, "Take care Velvet." "I will Jaune, don't worry." she said, smiling at me.

As she walked away, Pyrrha spoke up, "Why'd you give her your gun?" she asked, stepping back and raising an eyebrow towards me. I just shrugged, walking towards my apartment at the end of the hall, Pyrrha following me as I spoke. "To protect her. Plain and simple." I said as I got to my apartment, pulling open the door. I found everything was the way it always was, nothing out of place, no one had been inside and rooting around since I'd left for Mistral. I saw my bags set on the bed, guess Velvet brought them up between when we got back and this morning. "Isn't that gun important to you?" "I can get a new gun if mine goes missing or breaks. Sure it's expensive, but I can do it. I _can't_ replace her." I said, gesturing behind me towards the group that had just left as I started unpacking my bags, noting which ones had dirty clothes and which one's had clean one's. I took out some clean ones and laid them on the bed, one's to change into after I took a shower of course.

"I thought she was just your secretary?" "She is… but she's more than that, a lot more." I said, taking off my hat and setting it on the nearby rack, the one that was _supposed_ to be used for coats. Speaking of, I took my trenchcoat off, laying it next to my hat before I reached in the pocket, blocking view of my coat with my body as I grabbed out Blake's underwear. I shoved them in a drawer in the nightstand, not letting Pyrrha get a good look at them, as quickly as I could without arousing suspicion. "You love her, don't you?" she asked, giving me a slight smile as I turned, laying my now empty holster on the bed. I was about to refuse that statement, I wasn't interested in hooking up with Velvet, _especially_ now that I was going out with Blake, but… then I realized she was kind of right. "Yeah but… not in a romantic kind of way. She's…" "Family."

I turned around, smiling slightly as I saw Blake standing there, wearing, strangely, exactly what she had the night before. Maybe she ran out of clean clothes or something? She was smiling at me as I nodded, "Yeah… exactly." I said. Pyrrha just nodded, smiling slightly as she turned to leave, Blake stepping aside and letting her go past. Pyrrha just smiled back at me, "I'm off today, and now that I'm not paralysed, getting home should be easier. I'll see you around, Jaune. Oh! And tell Velvet I'll send her clothes back in the mail." she said, turning away and walking back towards where I guessed she was sleeping last night. Once Pyrrha walked away, leaving only me and Blake, she smiled at me, walking in. "Almost had me worried… when you said you loved Velvet." she said, wrapping her arms around my waist. I leaned down, pecking her lips before I leaned back. She smelled like lavender, she'd just gotten out of the shower no doubt. I chuckled, "Blake, believe me. The only woman _I_ have eyes for, is you~" I said, smirking slightly as I leaned in closer, wrapping my arms around her back. She giggled, leaning her head against my chest before she spoke.

"You need to take a shower still right?" "Is it that obvious?" I said, giving a somewhat embarrassed smile. She shook her head, sniffing slightly as she reached her hands up, running through my, likely greasy, hair. "No… you still smell like me. Like a cat. I think _your_ scent works better for you though." she said. I blushed slightly as I turned around, walking towards the small door that lead to the bathroom, as there was one in every apartment. I just nodded back at her, "Once I'm out we'll go talk to Ruby… then we can have that date I mentioned last night." I said, smiling. Blake giggled again as she gave a little wave, starting to walk towards the door. I turned around, opening the bathroom door as I walked in, locking it and quickly shedding off my somewhat dirty outer shirt. I started working on my pants as well before I stopped, standing up straight and looking in the mirror. I saw my chest, lined with small cuts and bruises here and there, just occupational hazards really, but then I saw the big one, where I was gutted. I shook the thoughts out of my head as I shed off the rest of my clothes, getting ready to take a shower.

When I got out, my towel wrapped around my waist, like usual. I saw Blake, sitting on my bed, my katana in her hands. It was out of it's sheath, and she was slowly tracing her fingers along the writing. She seemed almost mesmerized by it, and when I walked towards her, she didn't look up until I spoke. "Why is that out of it's sheath?" I asked. Blake jerked her head up, her face burning bright red as her eyes wandered down, looking over my form. I saw what looked to be a small drip of blood coming from her nose as I walked over to her, holding one hand out to her and one hand around my towel. She handed me the blade, and I quickly took it, holding it up in the light. "This remind you of anything?" "Blake I'm not role playing Ninja's of Love with you right now… maybe later." I said, setting my blade on the desk. She was no doubt referring to the infamous 'shower scene' where the main character had just walked out of a bathhouse, meeting the princess for the first time. The scene was infamous because it gave a _highly_ detailed description of the sexual acts the two performed, not to mention it was on, like, page nine of the book.

She frowned for a moment, but then nodded, standing up and getting off of my clothes. "Yeah, hate to keep Ruby waiting." she said, frowning slightly. I just stood there, waiting on her to leave the room. She looked contemplative for a second, but then she walked away, heading back out the door behind her. I walked over to the door, shutting and locking it behind her before I dropped the towel, laying it on the bed as I grabbed my underwear, pulling them on first. Then my pants, my white undershirt, and at last, my trench coat and fedora. When I was dressed, I reached behind me, pulling my katana onto the familiar sheath around my waist. I reached up, panicking a bit out of instinct when I didn't feel my gun in it's holster. " _Right, right… never get used to that._ " I thought as I walked over to the door, pulling it open. I started walking towards Blake's room, standing in front of the door as I knocked. "Come on in." I heard Blake say. I pushed open the door, raising an eyebrow towards her as I felt a blush creeping up to my face.

She was standing right in front of me, clad in a similar pair of black underwear as she was the night before, though these one's weren't stained. She smiled at me as her own face flushed slightly, her pulling out two skirts from a drawer. "Say… which one looks better?" "Whichever one you put on. They'll look better on you than in a drawer." I said, giving her a playful smirk as she giggled, grabbing the lighter of the two, laying it on the bed and picking out a simple white top, rather strange for someone that wore so much black. She got dressed, not at all minding that I was watching her, until she got to her denim jacket. She looked down at it, her eyes flashing with something I recognized, though I'd never really experienced myself. Homesickness. I walked over, looking down at her jacket and seeing a golden thread on the inside. Hand stitched, "We'll always love you… mom and dad… you miss them don't you?" I said, laying a comforting hand on her shoulder.

Blake just nodded, turning the jacket around and quickly pulling it on, grabbing her M1911 and laying it in it's holster, as well as a few clips of ammo in the pockets. She sighed as she spoke, "I never told them… I couldn't." she muttered. I gave her a confused look, laying a hand on her shoulder. I asked the question with my eyes that words couldn't, and she understood, and this time, she answered. "I didn't tell them I was in the White Fang, I didn't tell them I had a boyfriend, I didn't tell them I was pregnant… I didn't tell them I was running away with Adam." she said, looking down at the floor as I saw something flash across her face, something I usually didn't see in the stoic cat faunus. Something that, to be honest, I began to contemplate if she even had, considering how easily she killed and fought. Not in a hitman or assassin way… but in her way. That emotion, it was rather familiar to me.

Guilt.

"Would it make you feel better? To go and see them I mean." I said, placing my hand gently on her shoulder. She turned, her eyes widening as she looked at me. She blinked a few times, and I noticed her ears twitching back and forth behind her little black bow. "They live in Menagerie, they're really far away." "Then we can fly there." I said, smiling slightly at her. Her eyes widened even more, if that was possible, before she started asking questions, most of them 'What if' statements. I just answered them all.

"What if they won't let me in?" she asked.

"I'll kick the door down." I answered

"What if they try and hurt us?"

"I'll protect you."

"What if they've left? Gone somewhere else?"

"We'll find them."

"What if… what if they don't love me anymore."

That last one stopped me from answering her. I moved in, wrapping my arms around her waist and laying my chin on top of her head. She didn't hesitate to wrap her arms around my waist as well, her head sinking slightly into my chest. "Blake… they're your parents. Even if they have a weird way of showing it, they'll _always_ love you." I said, pulling back and giving her my warmest smile. She smiled right back, leaning up and pecking me on the cheek as she giggled. Which only caused my smile to widen, and my blush to deepen. "Your such a dork." "Hey, you're dating this dork, what's that make you?" I asked, giving her a smirk as she lightly pat my arm, stepping back and walking towards the door. She reached back, taking my hand in hers as we walked out her door, both of us with light blushes and small smiles. I felt strange walking around without my gun, almost felt like I was naked without it. I'd done it a hundred times but man, never got any easier to give it to Velvet. We walked over to the stairs, and I smiled at Blake.

"Here goes nothing I guess."


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter eighteen: Parties, plans, and secrets

 **(a/n- a recent review asked something I probably should've clarified earlier. They asked what age Blake was since we saw a previous flashback of her daughter. Well, Blake isn't** _ **much**_ **older in this than in the series, she's just eighteen, meaning that she had Nix when she was 15, since she was only 3 when she was murdered. So yeah, Blake was a young mother, but she's also a little older in this. In hindsight I should have made that clear earlier.)**

"Rise and shine."

I groaned, gripping the side of my head as I pushed myself up off the bed, slowly looking around. I saw pink walls decorated with the familiar hearts on them, all of which had a lightning bolt struck through the center. I sat up, looking down as I saw the bright pink sheets slipping off my body, the air hitting me a second later. I looked over, smiling slightly as I saw a key laying a few inches away. " _Least she remembered this time._ " I thought as I moved my foot around, hooking my toe around the key ring and flinging it up towards my hands. I grabbed it, moving it around as I unlocked the cuffs around my hands, the cuffs which had kept me chained to the bed all night. "Ah… think I pulled a muscle." I muttered as I sat up, rubbing my bare leg. I looked around, blinking a few times as I saw the familiar figure standing across from me, looking over towards me. The bright orange hair was a dead giveaway, that and the fact that no one else would walk into Nora Valkyrie's bedroom in nothing but an apron other than Nora Valkyrie… unless it was me.

"About time. I'm getting hungry." she said, a somewhat loud groan resounding from her stomach. I just stood, Nora's eyes trailing down as she smiled, her face tinted red. She reached behind her neck, stripping off the apron and handing it to me. "Where's your apron?" "I can't cook, it just hides what _you_ like staring at." she said, smirking slightly as she stepped back, revealing that she was baring all to me, just like she was last night. I smiled as I tied the apron on, walking over and leaning down. We kissed without hesitation, Nora yelping into it before she looked down, smirking back up at me. "Better wash those hands, you were all over that last night." she said, smirking wider when she noticed the faint blush on my cheeks. Whenever she made me blush, for some reason she saw it as a victory, likely since I chose against showing much emotion as often as I could. I turned around, walking down the stairs before I felt a light swat on my rear. I looked back, Nora still smiling, "Don't keep me waiting~" then she shut the door behind her.

I just turned around, freezing in my tracks as I saw someone standing there. It was a girl, that much was clear, frozen in place as she looked at me. She just gulped, blinking a few times as she walked around. "Are you Lie Ren?" she asked, her face sporting a blush as she took in my form, not used to seeing someone in just an apron if I had to guess. I didn't answer, but rather walked around to the kitchen, facing my side to her as I grabbed out the pans. "Face me!" she said, the familiar click of a gun being cocked resounding from her. I snapped my eyes to her, finding that she was holding what looked to be a simple pistol in her hand. I turned around, smiling at her slightly as I came up with an idea. "Threatening me at gunpoint huh? Well sorry, I've only got one thing I can give you." I said, smirking towards her as I held up one finger. She raised an eyebrow, keeping her eyes on my face and trying not to look at the rest of me. "What?"

I answered by slipping off the apron, the girls eyes widening as she flushed bright red, the gun shaking in her hands. I started walking towards her. "I can't give you any money… but I _can_ give you one hell of a ride~" I said, purring towards her as she stepped back, nearly dropping the gun in the process. I slowly slid my hand along the counter, reaching for the knife container. All I had to do was distract her for another few seconds. "Are, are you… coming onto me?!" she said, nearly dropping the gun. I felt my hand nudge against the side of the knife container as I smirked at her. "Nope." I rushed my hand up, gripping one of the knives and throwing it. "GAH!" she said, gripping her right hand, the gun and knife both being knocked across the room behind the nearby table. I grabbed two more knives and moved them over into each hand, holding them back and glaring at the girl. "That was a warning, the next two won't be." I said, fixing her with my steely eyed gaze.

"Get out of here." I said, standing upright but keeping the knives at my sides. The girl didn't think twice, just running away out the door off to who knows where, leaving the gun behind. I just picked up the apron, tying it back on and getting back to work on the pancakes. "Assassin?" "Not a very good one apparently." I said, smirking back towards Nora as she stepped out of the room. Odds are she saw the whole thing, it wasn't the _first_ time an assassin had tried to kill one of us. It probably wouldn't be the last either. I felt a weight hit my back as I turned, only to find my lips captured by the orange-haired Valkyrie. I pulled back after a second, seeing and feeling her legs wrapped around my torso, her bare chest pressing against my back. "I love you Nora." "Love you too honey. Now let's make some pancakes!" she said, the familiar short attention span coming back as I started working on the pancakes again.

 **Meanwhile**

I pressed against the side of the building, trying to calm my racing heart and get that image out of my mind. " _Argh… he played me like a violin! How do I focus when he's flaunting his body and flirting with me?!_ " I thought as I started walking down the alley, only to see someone walking towards me. Even if I couldn't see the wisps of gray hair from beneath his cloak, the boots and long black cloak gave away who it was easily. "So?" "I'm not going back in there." I said quickly, walking past him as I tried to think of _literally_ anything but what I just saw. Mercury walked in front of me, raising an eyebrow. I knew what he was going to ask, so I answered before he could. "He was in an apron… nothing else. Then he dropped it and started… flirting with me. Next thing I know he knocked my gun away and told me to leave… I did." I said, Mercury's eyes widening as I said that. Then he just sighed, "We'll, Neo isn't here anyway. We just need to get rid of that detective." he said. I just slowly nodded,

"As long as I don't catch him naked too."

… **\- new POV change thing (since I** _ **know**_ **this works on mobile)**

"This is it."

I looked down at the small slip of paper, the address Ruby had dropped off with Velvet a few days prior, while we were away in Mistral. We were standing in front of a large, black fence, with long pointed tips near the top of it. On either side of it there were tall hedges, almost ten feet high, obscuring anyone that may have been standing behind them. Behind the black fence was likely the largest building I'd _ever_ seen, even more massive than the complex I grew up in. "Guess crime _does_ pay sometimes." I muttered, looking off towards Blake. She was sitting on a bench a few feet away from the gates, claiming she thought Ruby would recognize her. I had a feeling it was more than that, but I didn't pry too much. I walked over to the stone pillar right next to the gate, seeing a man standing behind it. He looked over at me, reaching towards his waist. "My name's Jaune Arc. Ruby said you'd be expecting me?" I said, gesturing with my hand to try and convey my confusion. I wasn't sure what to expect, but a toll gate at the entrance wasn't on my list of possibilities.

The man just grunted, pressing a button as I saw the gates soundlessly swing open. I'd have thought from the look of them that they were incredibly old, at least a hundred years. Though, they acted as if they were brand new. I walked in, stopping for a second as I saw the gates shutting behind me. When they shut, I could hear the slight clang, rather intimidating to be honest. When I turned back around, I saw a familiar man walking towards me. Bright red eyes, jagged black hair, yeah, it was hard not to recognize him. His eyes didn't flash with recognition as he spoke, "You must be the detective Ruby hired. Come on in, she's anxious to see you." he said, giving me a smile. I played along, just nodding and not questioning why he was here as I followed him. He was probably being watched or monitored or something, either way the center of the Rose Family's empire was _not_ a safe place to talk.

I followed him down a long, winding path leading up to the white mansion on the hill. I saw marble columns on both sides, leading up large steps. There were sounds of music and all sorts of merriment inside, something I hadn't expected. Qrow walked in front and opened the door, and I was instantly greeted with a blast off violin music. I looked over, seeing a band playing on the side, two violinists and a cello playing to accompany a baby grand piano. On vocals though, was someone I _hadn't_ expected to see today. Weiss. She was singing on the mike to the music and, I had to admit, she had an _amazing_ voice. I turned my attention away from her to find people in long black gowns, some in tuxedos, all of them having one what seemed to be masquerade style masks. A few of them were even sipping from champagne glasses. " _Feeling a bit under dressed all of the sudden._ " I thought as I followed Qrow through the crowd. A man in a cloak with black boots and a guy in a trench coat and fedora? Oh we stuck out like sore thumbs.

Qrow led me across the room towards a large door in the back. When he pulled it open, he just shoved me in, "Good luck." was all he muttered before he shut the door behind me. When I got a good look around the room, I noticed there was a couch with a woman sitting on it already. She was clad in a long, red dress that was split along the side to show a long, pale leg stepping out from behind a table. There was a long white jacket behind her as well, laid across the back of the couch. She reached up a hand, brushing a strand of long, black hair away from her face before she gave me a smile. I was a bit confused, considering the fact that most of her face was concealed by a masquerade mask, much like her guests. Hers though, unlike most, hid her eyes behind it. "You must be Jaune. Come in, have a seat." she said, her voice somewhat high but, also having a mature quality to it, I had a sense she had a good singing voice.

I nodded, sitting down across from her on the white couch. She reached down, grabbing out two wine glasses and a dark red bottle. "Is red wine okay with you?" "I don't drink, I smoke." I said, completely lying. I didn't drink _often_ , but I wasn't opposed to it once in awhile. I didn't want to drink anything this woman had to give me. Something about her was setting off _so_ many alarm bells in my head. The woman just nodded, "Alright then. Clyde!" she said, clapping her hands as she set the wine glass away. Not a second later a man dashed in, standing at attention. His face was masked by a similar mask to who I guessed was his mistress, the masked woman in front of me. "Get my husband's cigars." "Right-ho ma'am!" he said, before dashing off again, out the doors and leaving me and the woman alone. She poured herself a glass of wine as she spoke. "Tell me detective, who am I?" "You're Ruby's mother, Summer Rose." I said, stating what I'd known the second I walked in.

She smiled at me, reaching a hand up and removing the mask to reveal, predictably, bright silver eyes. "Not bad. What was I doing an hour ago?" "You were firing a pistol, something close to a nine millimeter. There are still traces of gunpowder on your hands, not to mention the callouses on them." I said, gesturing towards her hands. She hid them away, her face tinting red as she likely made a note to get something done about those later. She regained her smile a second later as she laid her hands in her lap. "You live up to your reputation Mr. Arc. So… have you found my baby?" "I don't discuss cases with anyone but the client or my work associates ma'am." I said without thinking. It was my general rule. Even if they were related or they said they were sent, I only discussed my cases with the client, Ren, or Velvet. Though, I guess I could add Blake to that list now. She just nodded, frowning towards me as she sipped her wine. "Tell me something Mr. Arc, did you know there was a party this evening?" she asked, gesturing towards my coat.

I smiled slightly, "No. If I did have I've worn my good coat." I said. The woman let out a small chuckle, turning around and facing the door as I saw the butler, Clyde I guess, walk back in, holding a box of cigars. He laid it on the table as the woman reached over, pulling the lid open to reveal these one's weren't like mine in Mistral, open ended. These one's had closed ends, which meant I'd have to cut the ends off. "Go ahead, light one." she said. I just nodded, reaching over and slowly picking one up, grabbing the knife inside my coat and cutting off the end. I grabbed my lighter and lit the cigar up, placing it in my mouth before I took a breath, blowing smoke out towards the ceiling. "Fine cigars." "Imported from Atlas. Only the best for my husband." she said. I just nodded, so her husband smoked too huh? Whoever he was he had good taste, I'd give him that.

We sat like that for awhile, me smoking the cigar and Summer sipping her wine for a bit until the doors opened again. This time it was Ruby that walked in, giving me a little smile before she stood next to her mother. "Sit down dear." "Yes mamma." Ruby said, sitting down right next to her mother. I raised an eyebrow but, didn't question it too much. Maybe it was a rich people thing? I looked at Ruby, finding that she was clad in a red dress that matched her mother's, except she still had on the denim jacket. _Now_ though, I noticed it had three patches. Yellow, White, and Black. "Did you find Yang?!" Ruby asked, straight to the point as her eyes filled with both hope and worry. I frowned and gave her the best look of pity I could as I reached into my pocket, pulling out the small necklace Yang had given me. "I… found this on her body… I'm sorry but, I was too late." I said. Summer covered her mouth with her hand as I saw Ruby do the same with both of hers. I saw tears well up in Ruby's eyes as she reached over, shakily grabbing it from me.

"No… nononono Yang! Yang… I'm so sorry…" Ruby said, tears streaming down her face in either the best acting I'd ever seen… or genuine sadness. Maybe, somewhere in that twisted heart of hers, Ruby _did_ care about Yang. I stood, walking over and laying a hand on Ruby's shoulder. She spun around and wrapped her arms around my chest, burying her head into it and wailing. I just pat her back, looking down at her with genuine sympathy. There was no _way_ she was this good at acting. She must've been at least _somewhat_ sad about her sister's 'death' if she was doing this. "I can't believe I'm so _stupid_! Why? Why did it have to end like this!" Ruby yelled, slowly sinking to the floor as I sunk down with her, wrapping my arms around her as she sobbed into my shoulder. She kept talking, I just listened. "I wish… I wish I could tell her I'm sorry… I didn't mean it Yang, I don't hate you. I still love you… please juhust come baahahhack!" Ruby said, sobbing through the last sentence as I felt a spark of genuine empathy for the killer. She must've really loved her sister… even the best actor in Remnant couldn't pull off something this genuine.

We stayed that way for awhile, until Ruby had seemed to calm down. She stood, wiping away at her eyes with her hands before Clyde, who had reentered the room at some point, handed her a handkerchief. Ruby took it, dabbing at her eyes before she blew her nose, laying the cloth on the table before she frowned up at me. "I… I need to be alone for a bit… here." she said, shoving something towards me. I took it, looking down to find it was a few cards of lien, just as many as she'd given me the other day. "Are you going to be okay?" I asked, frowning towards her. She shook her head before she gave me a smile. "Things won't be the same without Yang but… we'll be alright. Thank you." she said. Then, she did something I hadn't expected. She leaned up, planting a small kiss on my cheek. I didn't move as she stepped back, walking off towards what I guessed was her room to mourn more on her own. I turned back to Ruby's mother, finding her still frowning as she looked down at the table.

"Mrs. Rose?" said woman looked up at me, changing her expression back to a small smile. I didn't see any emotion in it, even though she was acting the part of the distraught mother. She was the cold one, not her daughter. "Is there… something else you needed?" "Yeah. Does the name Roman Torchwick sound familiar to you?" I asked, sitting back down and continuing to smoke the cigar. Summer's eyes widened as she leaned back, looking down at the ground as her eyes flashed. "What I say… can you keep it a secret?" "Of course." I said, knowing that it was one promise I would have to break. She just smiled for a second, but then she frowned again, lightly twisting the small ring around her left hand ring finger. "I don't know why I'm telling you this but, any rumors you'd heard… about me and Torchwick… they were true. My husband he… he hadn't been as attentive to me as of late. Then that suave criminal came in and swept me off my feet… it was like he had me under his spell." she said, an awestruck look dawning on her face.

Then she frowned, "When I learned he'd been killed I… well I had to hide my grief from Tai. He'd been so absent but… then a week later I found out. This whole time he'd been planning this _amazing_ anniversary for me… I still feel so guilty about what happened. I… well I never got the nerve to tell him I cheated on him." then she sighed, looking at me with pleading eyes. "I know you have every right to tell him but, please, don't. Without Yang I… I don't think this family can handle another disaster." she said, setting her wine down, likely done drinking. I just nodded, standing up and snuffing out the cigar in the ashtray nearby, one that Clyde had likely brought in with the cigar box. I was about to turn when I felt a soft grip on my wrist. I turned, seeing Summer looking down at me, as she was maybe an inch taller. "Mr. Arc, here." she said, taking out what looked to be a small envelope from her jacket pocket, the jacket that was on the back of the couch. I took it with my other hand, laying it in my jacket as she spoke. "Ruby may have paid you but, consider this _my_ way of saying thank you. It's an invitation to our party next weekend. It's for you and one guest… do you have a girlfriend?" "Yeah, I do." I said, the black haired faunus outside immediately coming to mind.

She nodded, "Well, I suppose I'll see you two there, or maybe that partner of yours? Whoever you decide to bring with you." she said. Then, she moved forwards, wrapping her arms around me for a few seconds before she pulled back, smiling down at me. "I look forward to seeing you again, Mr. Arc." she said, and for a split second, her smile turned into something more sinister, almost appearing like a snake's, if only for a second. I didn't dare let a sign of fear flash over my face, so I just smiled and nodded as I walked away. "I look forward to seeing you again as well, Mrs. Rose." I said calmly. Then I walked back out, shutting the door behind me. I saw Qrow standing nearby, smiling over at me as he stood. "I'll be escorting you out Jaune." he said, likely considering there was a servant nearby dusting off a painting, one of Summer Rose herself, maybe when she was a bit younger. Qrow started walking, the two of us heading towards the front entrance again.

When we got there, I noticed that something had changed. Weiss was no longer singing with the band, but rather walking off the stage, heading right in my direction. Our eyes looked for a brief second before hers widened, her pace speeding up just a bit as she moved to cut off me and Qrow. She stopped between the two of us, so I simply stopped, watching as Qrow walked off through the crowd, oblivious that I was no longer following. "Did you find out where Yang was?" she asked, her eyes flashing with curiosity. I just nodded, causing her eyes to widen a bit more. She looked around for a few seconds at the nearby party-goers before she walked over, grabbing my hand and roughly pulling me around, towards a nearby door. She shoved past a few people before she flung the door open. I caught it and shut it behind us before I felt Weiss let go. I turned, finding that we were in what looked to be a bedroom with a single bed in the center. Weiss walked over to me, moving her hand past me and locking the door.

"Where's Blake?" "Wait, you know about her?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. I hadn't even _mentioned_ Blake to her at all, yet suddenly she wants to know about my cat faunus girlfriend? Something wasn't right. "I know you had to find her to find Winter, and rumor has it her hideout was ransacked by white fang just a bit before you came to us. Is she safe?" she asked, her eyes flashing with, oddly, genuine concern. I just nodded, I would never let anything happen to her if I could help it. She leaned in, speaking in a slow, urgent whisper as she pulled me away from the door, onto the wall next to it. "Listen to me Jaune. You are in over your head in ways you can't _possibly_ comprehend. If you wanna get out of this alive, you need to take everyone you care about, and get as far away from this place as _possible_. Get out of dodge while you still can." she said, looking around as if to make sure no one was listening in. I was both confused and _incredibly_ alerted. I had a sense that she was paranoid, but I knew she wasn't crazy. Combine that with the fact that Ren had said Nora was planning something big about a week ago, and I was starting to be concerned. The next thing she said, sent a shiver down my spine.

"Unless you want to live in an empire of roses."

Weiss pulled back, walking towards the door and unlocking it as if nothing had happened, her face going back to it's usual state. She shut the door behind her, so I waited a few seconds before I opened it, walking out into the party. I walked past the guests until I saw the doors towards the end, Qrow standing at the entrance. He flashed me a serious look that was gone a second later as he opened the door, taking a small drink of what looked to be a flask. I walked out the door, him doing the same as he shut it behind us. I heard the music grow fainter and fainter until it became nearly nonexistent, only the sounds of the city that were quickly approaching accompanying us. "Glad we get to talk. There's a package of mine that's been in my… possession far too long. It's causing all sorts of unnecessary delays." Qrow said, giving me a sidelong glance. I just nodded, figuring he was speaking covertly and hoping that I would understand. If I had to guess, he meant that he had a runner under his wing that needed to go to a safehouse.

"A good business man moves his goods efficiently." I said, trying to speak covertly as well. Qrow just nodded, seemingly approving of it as we neared the exit. He turned to me before we got up to the toll gate. "Exactly. Unfortunately my package has been… difficult, to transport. Think you can… help with that?" he asked, nodding towards the man at the toll booth. Said man grunted, pressing a button as the gates swung open. We started walking out as I spoke again, "Facilitate delivery… can do, soon." I said, giving Qrow a slight smile. He returned it, walking off to the left as I walked straight ahead, heading for the place I knew Blake would be waiting. "You know, maybe take your little kitty out under the stars for a walk, she might like that." he said. I understood what he meant, the task of moving the runner was going to take place at night, and he was suggesting bringing Blake with me. I just nodded, thanking him for the suggestion as he walked off.

I turned back around, walking towards the bench and smiling as I saw Blake sitting there, looking across the street. I slowly walked up to her, and I gently set my arms on her shoulders, moving up to where my mouth was near her bow. "Guess who?" I whispered, smiling down as I saw her turn around. She gave me the same smile back as she leaned up, pecking me on the lips before she stood, walking around the bench before she wrapped an arm around my waist. "I overheard with Qrow, night delivery huh? Mind if I tag along?" "Blake I wouldn't have it any other way." I said, smiling down at her. She giggled as she leaned up, planting a kiss on my cheek as she leaned on my shoulder, the two of us walking down the sidewalk. I looked around, habitually keeping watch for any nearby threats, but at the same time, not _nearly_ as worried about it now that I had Blake with me. "I wish we didn't have to make these deliveries tonight… there was _so_ much I wanted to do with you." she said, smirking slightly when she saw my blush. Then I smirked back, "Well, plenty of time before nightfall…" I left it hanging, and Blake naturally finished it for me.

"How about we get a head start?"


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter nineteen: Flirting and finding

I smiled as I sat down, looking over at Ton-Ton and Neo. They were just so happy… playing around and acting as if there was nothing wrong with the world. Neo didn't even care about Ton-Ton being a faunus… " _Now I know how my mother felt._ " I thought as I felt memories stirring. So much so that, I didn't even notice the person standing next to me, not until they spoke. "Quite a cold morning isn't it?" I felt my heart leap into my throat as I heard it. That voice… it was so familiar to me. When I looked over, I had to stop myself from hugging the woman in front of me. The brown hair, the beret, the familiar sunglasses and cocky smirk… I'd know her anywhere. " _Coco…_ " I thought, giving her a slight smile as I nodded, looking back towards Ton-Ton and Neo. " _Just act natural, just act natural._ " I thought to try and calm myself down… it wasn't working. She looked over towards them, giving a slight smile as she saw Neo fall down, Ton-Ton picking her up. "Is that your little sister?" "My daughter, actually." I said.

Coco's eyes widened a bit before she looked away, her face having that familiar look of pain on it. I wanted so badly to wrap my arms around her, soothe her the way I used too when we were younger. But I couldn't go back to that life; not now, not ever. "Where are my manners? I'm Coco Adel." she said holding out a hand and giving me a smile. I reached over, shaking her hand as I returned the greeting. "Florence Valentine." I said. It was the new name I'd adopted briefly when I was in the white fang. Coco didn't know it, so she might just think I'm some random faunus. She nodded, smiling at me. Her eyes were still flashing with recognition, but they weren't as pained as before. Now that she'd gotten over the brief hope that I was Velvet Scarlatina, the girl that died so long ago… now she would be better. "Mind if I sit?" she asked, gesturing towards the empty bench beside me. I just nodded, slightly confused. Coco _never_ asked if she could sit, or if she could walk in a certain place, or go into someplace, or if she could drunkenly collapse into my bed when I wasn't around… she just _did_ it. Coco was cocky, she was aggressive, and she took what she never conformed to any rules but her own. That was Coco.

This was different.

This wasn't the Coco that _I_ knew. She was… quieter. She was less confident in what she did. Something had shaken her confidence; it made her… " _She's more like me… what happened to you?_ " I thought as she sat down, wincing slightly as she rubbed her left thigh. I knew that was a new injury, she'd never done that when I'd seen her, not once. "Are you okay?" "It's fine… just an old wound that'll never heal." she said, frowning as she leaned back, looking over towards Neo and Ton-Ton. While she looked at them, I looked at her. Same clothes as always… except she was wearing the brown sweater and long pants she normally did in the colder seasons. "I'm… kind of surprised. That you'd want to sit with a faunus." I said, looking away from her. I knew her response, but it seemed like the thing a stranger would say. Coco shook her head, giving me that familiar, warm smile. One that had kept me from breaking down when things got hard, one that kept me going for so many years… it was nice to see it again. "You seem okay to me, barring being a bit distracting." she said.

Okay, not exactly what I was expecting, "What about me is distracting?" "I always get distracted by cuties sitting next to me." she said, smirking slightly as I felt my face turning red. Though, it was partially out of fear. She always would tease me like that when we were growing up, and when we worked together. Was she on to me? Or was she always this flirty and I just never noticed? She leaned back, stretching her arms out to the sides of the bench as she moved slightly closer, enough that her other arm wasn't hanging off the edge. I could feel the warmth of her hand behind me as she spoke, "You blushing because of me doll? Now you're even more distracting." "You're pretty distracting yourself." I said, not even really thinking about it. I looked away, feeling my face burn even brighter as I fought to keep my face neutral. I took a glance over at Coco, finding that she'd pushed down her glasses slightly, her eyes trailing me up and down as she kept that same smile. "For a mother, you sure know how to take care of your figure." she said. I couldn't help but smile at her as our eyes met.

" _Am I… flirting with her?_ " I thought. It was… unusual, to say the least. She didn't know who I was did she? So why was she complimenting me so much? She couldn't… she couldn't _really_ be into me could she? That didn't… that wasn't… that wasn't it. "Say… you got any plans later Flo?" she asked, shortening the name I'd given her. It reminded me a fair bit of her calling me 'Vel' back when we were younger. Which, given the context now, may have changed _literally_ every single thing that had ever happened between us… if I was right that was. Which I _hoped_ I wasn't. "The rest of the day." "How about tomorrow?" she asked, pushing down her glasses as her eyes burned with something I didn't recognize. I frankly didn't _want_ to recognize it if I was honest with myself. I shook my head, I was off work tomorrow and didn't really have many plans. She smiled, reaching into her pocket and taking my hand with one of hers. "My work's been rather stressful lately, and I could use a cute little distraction like you." she said as she set down what looked to be a piece of paper in my hand. I looked down, finding that it was an unfamiliar number. She must've changed it in the two years I'd been gone.

"I've been looking for a cute distraction for awhile now… you're the cutest one I've ever seen~" she said, keeping her signature smirk as she reached forward, trailing her index finger beneath my chin as I felt a shiver go down my spine. Was she really doing this? I didn't even think she was into women in the first place, what with all the guys she flirted with when we were younger. " _Things really have changed since I've been gone huh?_ " I thought as Coco leaned closer, past my face as she held her mouth near my ear. I felt her blow into it as my face exploded into blush. This wasn't her first time doing something like this was it? "How about we go distract each other tomorrow hmm? Call me~" she said, just before I felt like I was about to faint, feeling lips pressing just beneath my ear. She pulled back, walking away as I just sat there, looking off in the general direction she'd sauntered off, watching that cat-like strut she'd always had in work as she walked away, turning heads even when she wasn't trying.

"Owie!"

I was snapped out of my daze by an expression of pain coming from none other than my daughter. I looked over, dashing towards her before I leaned down, letting out a small sigh of relief when I found that it was only a scrapped near. "It's okay sweetie, just give me a few seconds." I said, reaching into my pocket and pulling out a small band-aid. I peeled off the back and gently planted it on her knee, rubbing my fingers on it before I leaned in. Lightly kissing the place over the bandage. "There we go, all better." I said, smiling up at Ton-Ton as she smiled back, Neo looking on with a concerned gaze. I stood up, looking back towards Coco's general direction for a few seconds before I turned back towards my daughter. "I think it's about time we head back anyway." "Aww… okay." Ton-Ton said, looking down at the ground and pouting. I hated seeing her that way, but Neo seemed to help a little, patting her shoulder and giving her a comforting little smile.

I turned around, grabbing Neo and Ton-Ton's hands as we started walking back the way we came. I didn't want either of them getting lost now did I? As we walked, a few people looked towards us, most of them glaring at me or Ton-Ton, some with sympathy, fellow faunus mostly in that category, and some out of disgust and anger. Humans, of course, made up that category. I ignored them, used to it at this point, and turned down the familiar alley we'd walked down to get to the park. It was a shortcut between two buildings that would lead us back to the office. We were almost halfway there when I saw someone walking forwards, blocking the exit to the alley. I turned my head, looking back to find that there were two other men, blocking the only other way out of the alley. "Lookie here boys. We caught ourselves a couple a animals." the one in front of us said, slowly walking forward as I heard a light tapping on the ground. I saw the figure setting down something, a shadowy weapon of some sort. Likely a bat or pipe.

"We don't want any trouble. Just let us leave." "I'm afraid that ain't how it works little bunny. You see, this is _our_ turf. You came in without askin', payin', or nothin'. So, you pay the toll. _Then_ we let you go." the man in front said, walking almost into the light, only to reveal that he was wearing a simple mask, black with eye-holes and a place where his mouth was exposed. I looked back, seeing the two men from before just standing there. They were shorter, and they didn't have weapons. They were for intimidating effect, nothing else. "Wh-What kind of toll are you talking about?" I asked, feeling myself starting to shake as much as my voice quivered. I had a bad feeling about this, and if being part of Beacon taught me anything, it was that you went with your gut. Right now, mine told me to get as far from this man as _possible._ "Drop the clothes and follow me. We'll have a little fun." he said, smirking as he walked forward, moving his bat over his shoulder.

I reached down, beneath my shirt to grab Jaune's revolver, only for the man to grab my hands, jerking me away and hitting me against the wall. "On second thought, I think I'll do this one myself." he said, still smirking as he reached down, grabbing at the waistband of my pants. I felt real panic now, I couldn't reach Jaune's gun, I couldn't break from his grip. I felt air on my stomach as the man seemed to move my shirt up, slightly pulling down on my pants as I looked, seeing part of my brown underwear showing. "Now keep calm freak, and take it like a good money whore~" the man said, smirking as I shut my eyes, thrashing as much as I could in his grip. Whips of panic hit me as I suddenly didn't see the black mask. Instead the white one with the red eyes, the black jacket, the horns. "NO!" I yelled, kicking upwards with all my strength as I felt the man's grip loosen. I tried to move forwards, grab my daughter and Neo and just run. Though, a hit to the back of my knee stopped me, sending me crumbling to the ground. I looked back, feeling the man's weight on my knees, as he pulled my pants down, exposing my bare rear to him. "I never like corpses as much as live one's, but it'll have to do!" the man nearly yelled, standing up and holding his bat above his head.

BANG!

"OH SHI-"

BANG! BANG!

I felt myself freeze up as I saw the spurt of red, the man's face suddenly changing from a black mask to a red shower as he fell backwards, landing with a thud behind me. I looked over, seeing the two men at the end of the alley, the one's that had been blocking us in, dead where they lay, in pools of still growing blood. I pulled my pants back up as I looked over, my eyes widening when I saw the shooter. Crocea Mor's, Jaune's revolver that he'd entrusted with me, as to keep me and the girls safe, was smoking. I was close enough to see the spent shells inside, it was what had killed those men. Ton-Ton was laying down, covering her little rabbit ears from the noise. She'd never heard a gunshot so close before. Meanwhile, Neo had jumped over Ton-Ton, likely to try and shield her from something or other, in case the thug started attacking them. The one that had fired the shot was someone I'd never seen before. The most notable features? A long black cloak, and wisps of silver hair coming from beneath it.

"Always hated these guys." he muttered, letting the gun drop to his side. Then he turned to me, the lower half of his face all I could see in the lighting. "Guessing your ass is what this guy wanted?" "Umm… uh…" I froze up, both stunned by the man's blatant honesty… and frankly the way he said it. He sounded younger than me, a teenager at the most. Yet he killed three men without even _flinching_. "Thank you." I said, after flounder for a few moments with my words. The man just scoffed, tossing the gun down towards me as I grabbed it, stuffing it back where it came from, beneath my bra, before I saw the man walking away. "You don't need to, I was gonna kill these guys anyway. Take your kids and get out of here." he said, walking around the corner, disappearing back into the crowded streets, all but unnoticed. No one had even turned their head at the gunshots… rather sad actually, that it was so commonplace to hear gunshots in the city now that no one even bothered caring what they were about. I stood, looking over to see Neo helping Ton-Ton up before the two of them walked over, both with frightened expressions. I just took their hands, nearly dashing back towards the office, hoping to get as far away from the rotting corpses as possible.

…

Blake looked over at me, her face slightly flushed as she looked down at her hand, "It's… heavier than I thought it would be." "Be careful with it… I've only got the one." I said, leaning against Blake. She grunted, "I… I don't think I can…" "Just relax," I moved her hands down slightly, "you're too tense." I said. She grunted again as I leaned back, letting her get used to it. "Jaune, it's too big." "You're overthinking it, just calm down and relax." I said, giving her a smile as she grunted again, moving her hands around. "Easy for you to say, I've never done this before." I moved my hands around, placing them on her shoulders. "Lucky for you, _I_ happen to be an expert on the matter. Now spread your legs a bit, they're too close together for this." I said. She complied, moving them slightly apart as she readjusted her hands again. I stepped back, looking down and grabbing her hands.

I took my katana out of her right one, sheathing it back on my waist. "Why did I agree to teach you this?" I asked, sighing as I did so. We were in the city gym for that very purpose after all. It was seemingly deserted, which wasn't that unusual in the middle of the workday, but still rather strange, considering me and Blake basically had a whole building to ourselves. Blake smiled, "Because we're dating? And couples help each other with things." she said, wrapping an arm around my shoulder. I let out a small chuckle as I wrapped my arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer as I pecked her on the lips. She repeated my action, but kept her lips against mine a bit longer before she pulled back. "Now come on, I want to at least _look_ like I know what I'm doing Sensei." "Don't call me that." I said, giving a slight glare towards her. For some reason she kept calling me that as I'd been teaching her, and frankly, I didn't really like her doing it. It made me sound too old and, frankly, like my mother.

Though, despite my objections, I drew my katana again, placing it in Blake's palms as she adjusted her grip, back to the way it should've been. She twisted her body upright, holding the katana over her shoulder and above her head, the way I was taught how to do it, but she was doing it in the _completely_ wrong way. "Your left hand needs to be in front of your right, and you're not low enough to the ground. Someone attacks you like that, you're an easy target." I said, reaching over and moving her hands around accordingly, gently pushing on her shoulders as she got the message, bending her knees a bit further. "There you go, now you at least _look_ the part." I said, smirking slightly when I saw Blake glaring at me. Her smile was pretty and all, but she looked so cute when she was mad. Granted, I just wished it wasn't at me.

"Teaching Mrs. Belladonna I see?"

I looked over, giving a slight smile towards the familiar man. He was dressed in a long, gray overcoat with a black fedora, somewhat similar to mine, except _far_ older and worse for wear, the signs of years of experience. I saw a black cane with a silver handle in his hand, and heard it thudding against the ground as he approached. I stepped back from Blake, nodding towards him. "Yeah. Good to see you again chief Ozpin." I said, stepping out of the small boxing ring we'd commandeered for Blake's training purposes. Blake still held the katana tight in her palm, seemingly ready to strike at Ozpin at any moment, a strike he would _easily_ deflect due to Blake's lack of experience and overall skill with a katana. "Indeed. I'd planned on meeting you in my office, but I suppose an empty gym would work just as well." he said, gesturing around at the rather strange lack of people. I saw the slight smirk he had, gone a second later. The way his eyes looked around the room, "You had something to do with this place being empty didn't you?" "If you mean I had Glynda and some of my officers guarding the exits… then yes. Yes I did." he said, giving me a strangely old-looking smile.

"Well, you've been wanting to talk," I said as I sat down on a chair just outside the ring, Ozpin doing the same, crossing his legs and laying his cane across them. I held up my hands, "Now I'm ready to listen." I said, giving him a slight smile. Ozpin nodded, giving me that sagely old smile of his before he uncrossed his legs, lightly toying with the top of his cane, the ornamental silver piece that adorned it. "I've been trying to get a meeting with you for the past six months. Every time I've contacted you, you've had your secretary tell Glynda no." "Speaking of Glynda, this needs to _stop_." I said, glaring towards him. That secretary of his was getting on my nerves. _No one_ , and I mean _no one_ messed with my friends and got away with it. Ozpin frowned as he nodded, "I am well aware of the situation with Mrs. Scarlatina, and believe me that I've tried talking with Glynda. She's a bit less than receptive to the idea of faunus. She grew up in Atlas you understand…" he said, looking away from me and towards the ground. I just nodded, the two of us coming to the same grave conclusion in our minds. Atlas was the last place to give the faunus rights, and the last place they were accepted. Safe to say, Atlesian's weren't known to be the most 'open-minded' of people.

"I didn't know… still, if she keeps doing as she is, I can't guarantee her safety in my workplace." I said, giving Ozpin a glare in the slight challenge. I was basically telling him I would sic Ren on Glynda if she kept insulting Velvet. He'd do it too, he'd fire a whole clip into her then dump her in the river if he could get away with it… he probably _could_ get away with it come to think of it. He had _plenty_ of experience getting away with murder. Ozpin held up his hands, "You've made your point Mr. Arc. Glynda will no longer be the one to inform you of meetings. I suppose I could have Ms. Nikos perform that duty. She _has_ seemingly warmed up a bit to you three." he said, no doubt referring to the original members of my agency. I just nodded, not speaking as Ozpin went on. "Well, now that _that_ bit of business is behind us, perhaps we should focus on the matter at hand." "I knew there was a reason for you to come out and block off access to a public building like this." I said, keeping my expression neutral.

Ozpin nodded gravely, "Indeed, I am here about the invitation you've gotten for Mrs. Rose's party." he said, his eyes taking on a serious quality only seen in him when dealing with the Rose family… or the White Fang come to think of it. I nodded, it made perfect sense. I had a way into one of the biggest crime families in Vale, possibly _Remnant_ , getting someone inside would be _incredibly_ beneficial for the police force. "What about it?" I asked. What was he playing at here. His next words, though I couldn't say they were a _surprise_ , I could definitely say I hadn't expected them. "I'm asking Ms. Nikos to be your date." "WHAT?!" Blake nearly yelled, almost lunging towards Ozpin, teeth bared in aggression as she held the sword up slightly. I held out a hand, laying it on Blake's to try and calm her down, Ozpin having his cane out, steely gray eyes looking out from behind darkened lenses as he tensed, ready for anything Blake would try to throw at him. I turned from Blake to Ozpin, "Ozpin Blake's my date." "I understand your feelings for Mrs. Belladonna, but having an agent inside the organization would be _extremely_ valuable to the department. If Ms. Nikos can incriminate the Rose family, imagine what Vale would be like. A kingdom free of roses." he said, putting a dreamy slur to his words.

"Besides, I am only asking you to take her to a party. I'm not asking you to _marry_ Ms. Nikos. I have no doubt Mrs. Belladonna would want that honor." he said, giving a slight smirk as I felt my face flush. I looked over and saw that Blake's was the same way, her hands trembling slightly as she gripped my katana. I looked over at Ozpin, then back at Blake. What to do… on one hand, I wanted to with to the dance with Blake, the woman I loved. But on the other, I could see where Ozpin was coming from with this. Getting the Rose family some long-overdue justice was a tempting proposition… then again, who's to say it would work? For all I knew Pyrrha would be compromised and get us both shot full of holes in a garden, Blake, Ren, and Velvet all left wondering what happened to us. Right before it happened to them. Taking Pyrrha in was risky to say the least, having a police officer enter the Rose family manor. Then again, she would just be seen as my date right? Maybe I could swing to them that she was the girlfriend I'd mentioned. Not to mention, what if Ruby recognized Blake? She'd been the reason that I'd found Blake in the first place. "I do need your answer before you leave here Mr. Arc." "... okay." I answered.

"I'll take Pyrrha to the party."

…

"Did you get that?"

I looked over at the young girl seated behind a small radio, one that we'd fashioned to suit our purposes. She nodded, orange hair bobbing up and down. "Yes ma'am! Jaune Arc will be accompanied by Pyrrha Nikos on the night of the party." she said, her voice as strangely optimistic yet emotionless as ever. I smirked as I looked down, pulling out a small object. It was a small, circular disk. A new type of technology only recently developed by none other than the girl sitting in front of me. The head of our research and development team. Had to keep ahead of the other criminals _somehow_ didn't we? "Well done Penny, you're invention is working just as planned." "Thank you Boss lady!" she said, saluting towards me as she stood, green eyes shut and a bright smile plastered on her face. I nodded, giving her a brief, humorless smile in return. "Pyrrha Nikos… that girl has to go." "Shall I kill her momma?" I heard my daughter's voice ask. I turned, smiling at her as I placed a hand on her head, lightly tousling her hair for a moment. She looked up at me, silver eyes burning in curiousity. "No, we need an accident, not an assassination. I _do_ hate outsourcing on such small things, but there's only one woman in Remnant that can pull this off…" I said as I turned to Penny, giving her a small smirk.

"Contact the Fallen, we need to arrange an _accident_ for Ms. Nikos."

 **(a/n- Don't lie, you thought Blake was talking about something** _ **very**_ **different right after the POV change weren't you? Better question, how many of you thought they were in a bedroom and not a gym?)**


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter twenty: Promises **(a/n- or in Ton-Ton's case "Pwomises")**

 **(a/n- Okay, quick story: I write all of my pieces on Google docs right? Well, JALR agency has actually gotten** _ **so**_ **long that I've had to resort to making a 2nd google doc so it doesn't impact my performance speed… yeah, it's over 150 pages now. Anyway, enough of 1st world problems and onto the story! Better get this posted before net neutrality goes away (or not, since** _ **everyone**_ **, even three of Maine's electorate (one of which is a** _ **Republican Trump Supporter**_ **), hates the idea) point being, here's chapter twenty!)**

"This will not stand."

I said, looking out among my children… what was _left_ of them anyway. Two young women, both blonde blue eyed, looked back at me, their eyes still red with tears over Jasmine's funeral and Maria's betrayal. The youngest, only a six year old, was sitting down in my lap, sleeping against my chest. I stood, handing off my youngest to one of the nearby servants. He'd tuck her into bed like he always did, it was past her bedtime anyway. Aureo, the girl standing to my right, spoke first, as was customary of the eldest remaining child. "Jasmine must be avenged mother. I ask you allow me to do this personally." she said. I just nodded, Jasmine was her twin sister after all, it would be most fitting for the killer's end to be met by someone that looks just like their victim. "Do we know who murdered her?" Aryl, the one to my left, asked. She was younger than Aureo, by five years in fact. Whereas Aureo was nineteen, Aryl was only fourteen.

"No. Though, our sources say that a blond, blue eyed male checked into the Sedwick hotel the day Jasmine was killed. He was wearing a faded trench coat and fedora, and was forcibly told to stop smoking within the hotel. He knew the hotel's layout already, according to the desk clerk." I said, reaching down and gripping the handle of my katana. I pulled it out slightly, looking down at my reflection in the blade. That same blonde haired, blue eyed face that occupied my children was on me as well. The only difference was age, even the cold of my eyes was replicated on them. "Was it… him?" Aureo asked, looking up at me with a spark of curiosity in her eyes. She was afraid of him, both of them wear. They knew that he was trained the same way they were, and that he'd had far more experience as the family hitman than they had as simple collectors. Or, in Aryl's case, as an intimidating presence.

"Jaune Arc. The only male heir to the Arc family name. Cast aside and outcasted due to his hesitance to kill himself for the clan." I explained, drawing my blade completely and tapping the edge on the table in front of me. Both the girls looked down at the ground, shifting around so that their legs were beneath them, and they were sitting on their heels. I held the bottom portion of the blade beneath Aureo's throat, forcing her to look up at me, straining her neck. "You will have your corpse, and your revenge my child."

"However, first, we must deal with a more pressing concern." I said, pulling my blade back and sheathing it. I looked over towards the door, seeing it slowly creaking open. I heard the thudding of boots as I looked up, seeing a man in a long, black trench coat walking into the room. His hair was a brilliant red, proudly displaying the dark horns in it's center. It was almost like a middle finger to the world, telling them what he was, and that he was proud of it. The most defining trait, by _far_ , had to be his eyes though.

Mostly since, they were hidden by that mask.

"The matriarch of the Arc clan." he said, smiling slightly as he walked towards us, stopping at the edge of the table. I nodded towards him, walking over until I stood only a foot away from him. I found that we were the same height, his mask level with my own eyes. The horns made him a bit taller than me though. "Adam Taurus, leader of the black hand of the white fang. Second in command only to Sienna Khan. I must admit, I hadn't expected you to accept my invitation to meet." I said, holding out my left hand. He held out his as well, shaking mine as he gave me a smile.

There was no emotion behind it, it seemed to be a forced gesture more than anything else. He would just as soon run his blade through my stomach than look at me. "Well, I happened to be nearby. I felt as if I owed you a visit. After all, we seem to have a common enemy." "And who might that be?" I asked, raising an eyebrow towards him. I normally wouldn't let confusion show on my face, but this time I felt it was warranted. Who would he be talking about? The enemy of the white fang seemed to be more along the lines of police officers or the military. Then… there was always Beacon. Yes… yes that must be it.

"Your son of course. Jaune Arc." he said. Okay, maybe _not_ Beacon, nevermind. I let the realization play out on my face, taking a few steps back as Aureo walked forwards, gripping at her katana, gritting her teeth. "I see… what has he done that has made him such a high priority for you?" "He stole my wife, Blake Belladonna. I won't stand by and do nothing as he _defiles_ her with his filthy human ways!... Ehem, no offense." he said, gesturing towards us. I shook my head, holding up my hand as if to say, 'none taken'. I looked out among my girls, letting a small smile show through on my face. "Pack your bags girls,"

"We're paying your big brother a visit."

…

"Kid?"

I groggily opened my eyes, hearing the whispered voice in my ear as I turned. I jumped back as I saw the pair of red eyes right next to me own, pulling the blanket up towards my chest as I felt Blake's side against my own. The red eyes pulled back to reveal none other than Bad Luck Charm, Qrow, smirking down towards me. "You can fuck around with Blake later, right now we have work to do. Get her up, be downstairs in twenty minutes." he said. Then, just like that, he jumped out of the nearby window in my office, into the night below. I saw a full moon shining as I looked down, smiling slightly at the sight beneath me.

Blake was laying in bed with me, this time _not_ the one in the clinic, her bare shoulder and smiling face exposed to me. I reached over, lightly petting her ears before I leaned in, whispering. "Blakie~ Time to wake up~" I said in a sing-song tone, sitting up myself and grabbing my boxers from the floor. Just as I pulled them on I heard Blake groaning, and when I turned I saw the covers fall from her body. She sat up, rubbing her eyes before she looked at me, smirking slightly. "Didn't know you were such an animal~" "Coming from the cat faunus." I said with a smirk, turning around and picking up my pants, pulling them on before I slipped my katana through the loops, right over my belt. I heard a loud thud as I turned, my eyes widening as I saw Blake laying on the ground, her bare back showing to me. Then she looked up at me, still smiling,

"You're stronger than you look. I can't feel my legs." she said, causing me to blush slightly before I reached down, hoisting her up and towards the door leading outside. I'd say to get her clothes but… well, there wasn't that much left to _get_ , unless you counted the few scraps of black cloth here and there. "Grab another set of clothes and your weapons, Qrow came calling." I said. She nodded, staggering down the hallway, naked, no doubt fighting through the pins and needles in her legs. I kept looking for a few seconds before I shut the door, grabbing my shirt, jacket and fedora before I grabbed my revolver. Velvet had given it back to me, unused like always. It was just a peace of mind thing, always was, probably always would be.

I pushed out the door, fully dressed and, other than Blake's scent that no doubt covered me, I looked like I always did. I took one look back at my room, frowning slightly as I shut the door. " _Note to self, order stronger bed-frame._ " I thought before I walked towards Blake's bedroom, only for someone to surprise me. I saw one of the doors suddenly open in front of me, a figure shuffling out of it, gray with tiredness. They were dressed in a long, brown gown with a few orange highlights, and the ears made it clear who it was. "Velvet?" I asked. I wasn't surprised she was here, she'd asked if she could stay and I'd said yes, no questions asked. I was only confused why she was walking around in the dark at almost two in the morning. Velvet normally went to bed at nine or so.

She didn't answer me as she walked forwards, laying her head against my chest and sniffing. "Hehehe~ Kitty~" she said, reaching up with a dreamlike gaze as I quickly took my hat off, blushing furiously as I let her move her hands around on my hair. She must've been too tired to tell it was me and not Blake. That or she was sleepwalking, hard to tell with her. If she was sleep walking though, her ears wouldn't be curled up so much, they'd be straight up, like when she was awake. I looked up, seeing Blake, dressed in a pair of jeans and a dark shirt, looking over at me, her eyes glowing in the darkness. "Blake. Little help here?" I whispered, not wanting to wake up Ton-Ton and Neo. Blake just nodded, walking over and lightly pressing against the base of Velvet's right ear.

She instantly crumbled to the ground, me scrambling to catch her as she leaned back, snoring suddenly coming from her. "How did you-" "Pressure point, all faunus have one. I took a guess where hers was." Blake said casually, holding the door open for me as I carried Velvet into the room, laying her on her bed as she quickly grabbed at the nearby body pillow, hugging it to her as a small smile graced her face. I looked over, unable to help the same thing happening to mine. Ton-Ton and Neo had decided to, rather than use one of the other bedrooms, sleep in here with Ton-Ton's mother. Ton-Ton was dressed in those cute little footie pajamas of hers, the one's with white bunnies like polka-dots and a large orange carrot on the front. She was curled up on a pillow, the large Neo curled around her, her head between Ton-Ton's little ears. Both were smiling, snuggling into each other.

I walked over, pulling a nearby blanket over them, Ton-Ton immediately grabbing it and pulling it up to her nose, it twitching just like her mother's as she pulled most of the blanket off of Neo's larger frame. I stood, walking away as I heard a voice speak from behind me. Soft and high pitched, "Daddy? Where are you going?" I turned around, smiling down as I saw Ton-Ton's sleepy gray eyes gazing up at me, her brow scrunched in confusion. I got on one knee, reaching over and rubbing between her ears, in that spot I knew she liked. She pressed against my hand, smiling as she shut her eyes. "Daddy has to go to work now sweetie. He'll be back soon okay~" I whispered, deciding against breaking the illusion. She held out her little hand, her fingers just going past the sleeves, her pinky stuck out towards me.

"Pwomise?"

I took her pinky in mine, shaking it twice as I tried not to fawn over the little lisp she put to her word. "Pwomise." I said in the same tone, leaning down and kissing her forehead. She laid her head back down, turning around and cuddling into Neo's chest, said girl wrapping her arms tighter around Ton-Ton, as if protecting her. I leaned over, pecking Neo's forehead too. "Goodnight girls." I said, standing up and walking away, Blake looking over and smiling at the ordeal, two nearly unnoticeable tears falling to the ground. I shut the door behind me, looking over at Blake. She leaned in and, no words needed, she pecked my lips, smiling at me. "You'll be a great father Jaune." then she turned, walking down the stairs as I was left a blushing mess.

Eventually though, I got over it, walking down the steps and into the familiar entrance to the office, only to stop in my tracks. Blake was standing right beside me, just looking over at the person across from us. He walked towards me, holding out his hands. I knew what he wanted. "You drive." I said as I tossed Ren his keys, him catching them effortlessly, spinning them on his hand as he nodded, walking outside. Blake turned towards me, "Just like that?" "Just like that." I said, lightly holding her wrist as we walked towards the entrance. I pushed it open, seeing Ren starting up his car like he normally did, the streetlights still on as they should be. Little traffic at two am. Then again, it was also a Tuesday night, er… Wednesday morning. Even then I saw a few cars driving out on the road. " _The city that never sleeps…_ " I thought as I opened the back passenger door of Ren's car.

Blake slipped in the back as I shut the door, pulling open the door and sitting in the front seat as well, pulling out a cigar. "What's the job?" Ren asked, his eyes flicking over to me as he adjusted his seat, mirrors, and just about _everything_ else from where I drove. I rolled down my window, pulling back the top of the car as I lit my cigar. "Facilitating delivery for our bad luck charm." I said, speaking (sort of) in code as Ren just nodded, backing out of the parking lot and into the road. "Where too?" "Follow me." I heard a voice say. We all looked over, mine and Ren's eyes widening as we saw a man wearing a black cloak, black pants, black shoes, and tinted motorcycle helmet road up next to us. They had a pistol at their side, discretely hidden against the rest of their black attire.

They drove off without another word, their voice one I actually recognized. "Follow her." I said, pointing towards Coco, the woman on the bike. Ren nodded, driving after her as I let out a puff of smoke, leaning my head up to the sky. I saw more streetlights and buildings than I did stars, unlike back in Mistral. There I would see a full night sky every night through that one, little window in the cell that was my home for twelve years… until, of course, I was old enough to leave it without causing my mother fear I would run away. " _Huh, guess she didn't keep me in long enough._ " I thought, smiling slightly as I let out another puff, looking straight ahead as I saw Coco pull off to the right, down an alley. Ren did as well, shutting off his headlights as we pulled to a stop, Coco walking out towards us.

Coco motioned us inside the nearby building, an unassuming green door in the middle of the alley. "Ninja, pull the car around front, roof up. You two follow me." she said. Ren nodded, staying in the car as me and Blake got out, Ren putting up the hood and rolling up the windows a moment later. We walked in past Coco before she shut the door behind us, walking ahead of us. In the room there was only a table, as well as four people seated on a nearby couch against the wall. One of them was Qrow, wearing his typical outfit, holding his rifle. Two of the others were men, the third a woman. I didn't recognize any of them, but they had two things in common. They all had animal traits, making them faunus, and they all had faint outlines on their faces, making them white fang.

Coco pulled off her helmet, letting her hair fall down as she set it on the table, walking back towards us. "You two, arms out. Detective, take off the coat." she said. Blake complied easily, and I, trusting her judgement, complied after a moment, setting the coat over the side and holding out my arms. Coco walked over to me first, and I immediately recognized what she was doing as a pat-down, searching my pockets and everything as well. I looked over and found Qrow searching my coat, setting my gun down near Coco's helmet as he rooted through it. "EH!" "Coco!" Blake said, angrily glaring at Coco as I felt my face burning, Coco's hands over my rear. She looked back at Blake, her gaze entirely serious. "You have _no_ clue where some of the families try and hide things Blake. You're lucky I didn't have both of you strip down to be searched." she said.

I heard a whistling noise as Coco looked over, taking her hands off me to my relief, only for her eyes to widen. In Qrow's hand there was a small, bright red metal piece, one he'd taken off the back of my coat. Qrow mouthed the word 'Bug' to Coco as she nodded, grabbing it from him and slowly walking outside. She looked around out the door for a second before dropping it, violently stomping on it as I heard the sound of crunching metal. "Dammit they're onto us! Get your coat and weapons detective! Get these three to the airport, ASAP!" she said, grabbing her helmet and pulling it on, drawing her gun, which looked to be a Skorpion model, the Vacuo equivalent to Ren's Mistral produced MAC-10. The three ex-white fang all stood, Qrow jumping up and ushering them towards a door across from us. Me and Blake walked towards it too, out into the streets.

I saw Ren pulling his car around as I jumped in the passenger side, trying to look like nothing was wrong. Meanwhile the three others piled into the back, Blake leaning over towards the open window. She leaned in, pecking me on the lips. "Be safe." "You too." I said as I rolled up the window, drawing my revolver as Blake ran towards a nearby car, a black convertible, the same model as Ren's. Blake hopped in the driver's seat as Qrow got in the back, pulling back what seemed to be a sunroof and laying on the top, cocking his bolt action rifle before he sat back, seemingly waiting behind the tinted windows.

Ren started driving, he knew the way to the airport well enough. Coco waited a few seconds before she drove as well, zooming past us before cutting in front of Ren, thankfully at _least_ having the sense to use her turn signal. I looked back and, just as we were about to take the first turn, I saw Blake start moving towards us. I looked around, my eyes widening slightly as I saw a car driving towards us in the left lane. I looked over at Ren, seeing that he was nodding. It _could_ just be some random person trying to get home after a late night' work… but me and Ren both knew it wasn't likely. The car pulled up next to us, the the second I saw the windows, I knew what was happening. "HIT THE BRAKES!" I yelled, Ren complying as I held on, bullets making a dust cloud from the concrete divider next to us. Coco turned around, spinning her bike on an axis before pulling out her gun, firing on the car, the people within bursting out the doors and rushing out, taking cover and exchanging fire with her.

I opened my door, Ren doing the same, me and him both getting out as I aimed towards one of the white fang grunts. I fired off two shots, one hitting him in the arm, causing him to drop his gun, the other hitting his foot, causing him to jump up. Of course, the second he jumped up, I saw Coco fire a round right through his head, his brains a morbid painting on the asphalt. Ren was firing at one of the others, keeping him stuck behind the car door he was using as cover, now from us, using the body as cover from Coco. I aimed lower, seeing his feet beneath the car as I fired off a round. Rather than jump like the other, he fell to the ground, clutching his foot as Ren quickly finished him off. About twelves rounds to the body and four to the head? Yeah, that should do it.

I saw the butt of a gun smash out the back window of the car, one of them smashing out the side window as Coco ducked behind a nearby concrete divider, her motorcycle being shredded by the bullets. The other one started firing at us as me and Ren jumped over the nearby divider, ducking down as the bullets started flying. The three runners all seemed to panic, the woman ducking in the floorboard of the car as the other two bolted. The one heading out the driver side was gunned down in seconds, falling to the ground as the gunman turned his gaze towards the other. I reacted faster, shooting the man's knee as he fell, the bullets _just_ missing him. "COVER ME!" I yelled over the gunfire as Ren obliged, blindly firing over the divider in the general direction of the car, keeping the man from poking his head out as he fired blindly back, some of the bullets thudding against Ren's windshield. " _Thank god for bullet-proof glass._ " I thought.

I reached the man, wrapping my arms under his before I hauled him back, jerking him over the divider as I too ducked down, looking over at him. "You _shot_ me! Aren't you supposed to-" "It was either I _wound_ you, or that guy _kill_ you! You want, I can stand you up and he can kill you right now!" I said, glaring towards him as he nodded, covering his head as bullets started flying at us again. Ren must've had to reload. I aimed towards the man in the back as Ren distracted him, firing at him blindly over the divider. I took a breath, firing only one bullet. The man dropped his gun, his mask blown to pieces as he fell back into the car. "Only one more to deal with." I muttered as I aimed towards the man.

He seemed to predict it though, firing towards me as I ducked. When I looked up again, my eyes widened as I saw what the man was wearing. "Oh shit." me and Ren said at once. The man in front of us no longer was using cover, instead covered in what looked to be ceramic trauma plates. I fired one shot at the chest, only for it to ineffectually bounce off. The man was wearing a metal helmet with a slit line made for vision, the only parts even remotely vulnerable were the joints. Of course, the two tommy guns he was holding made that a _bit_ difficult to fire at. I ducked down as the hail of bullets started coming at me, Ren, and Coco all at once. The two couldn't even _blindfire_ at the juggernaut without getting their hands or guns shot. Not to mention it likely wouldn't do any good. Even Qrow's rifle probably couldn't pierce that things armor.

Though, Blake seemed to know _just_ what to do.

She came barreling down the road, Qrow jumping off the car and rolling on the sidewalk, as Blake slammed into the behemoth, full force against the other car. The man was pinned at his legs, looking down at the car. Time seemed to slow as I saw him aiming both guns towards the driver seat. "BLAKE!" I yelled, rushing out of cover towards the man. After a second though, I felt everything go back to normal. I heard the pounding of bullets as the car's windshield nearly exploded, bullets tearing apart the interior as I fell to the ground, a few feet away from the bloody puddle made from the first man killed. "Blake…" I muttered, only watching as the man aimed his gun towards me. I aimed my revolver towards him, firing off all six shots I had left, aimed right at his elbows, the only things I could hit. The man dropped one gun, gripping at his arm with the gun he still had. I stood, rushing towards him as I tossed my revolver aside, drawing my katana.

By the time he aimed his gun towards me, I was already on him. I sliced right through his arm, cutting it clean off as all I could see was red. I forgot my training, the mission, _everything_ , all I could see was red. I held up my blade like a knife and tossed the man's helmet away, stabbing into that horrible mask over and over and over again. "Jaune! Stop! He's already dead!" I heard a voice saying. I spun around, holding my blade up in both hands, about to kill whoever interrupted me… only to see the one person I was killing for. "Blake… how…" I muttered, dropping my katana to the ground as she leaned in, wrapping her arms around me. "I told you I'd be careful, didn't I?" she said, smiling up at me.

I just sighed, wrapping my arms around her as I saw Coco, Ren, and Qrow walking towards us, even the man I'd wounded and the woman we were supposed to be saving walking over as well. Ren looked over at Coco, walking over to her and whispering something in her ear, apparently she'd taken off the helmet at some point. She just nodded, smiling towards Qrow. "I think it would be better if detective and little kitty go back… I'd rather not deal with a psychotic swordsman again if we find any other white fang." Coco said with a small smirk as she walked towards her bike, frowning when she noticed how completely destroyed it was. Then she shrugged, picking it up like it was weightless and tossing it onto the nearby white fang car. "Ninja I'm riding with you, bike's trashed." she said, tossing something on the car and her bike. Qrow drove his car away from it as me and Blake started walking, me grabbing my revolver.

BOOOM!

I looked back, seeing a plume of smoke rising from the wreckage as Qrow and Ren both drove off, leaving the nearby corpse and bloody trail, along with the corpse of the juggernaut I'd killed. I walked back to the sidewalk, watching Blake staring at the flames, tears falling down her face, seemingly without her noticing. "It's easy to fight a war when you don't see the destruction… harder to fight when you know the pain you cause." she said, her eyes glued to the fire. I placed a hand on her shoulder, snapping her out of her trance as I reached over, cupping her face and wiping away at her tears. "Blake… tell me something. How did you survive?" I asked. I mean, the man had literally _torn_ through the car with his bullets, yet she got out unscathed. It didn't make much sense to me.

Blake only smiled at me, "You tell me detective, how did I get out?" she asked, leaning against my arm as the two of us started walking down the sidewalk, back in the direction of my office. I rubbed my chin slightly, trying to think of how she could've gotten out. "Let's see… you couldn't have jumped out of the door because the man would've seen you do it and fired there instead. You couldn't have gone into the backseat because he would've still killed you… you jumped into the back and got out the driver side didn't you?" I asked, smiling slightly. If I was right, I had to give her credit for thinking of that in the heat of the moment. Blake leaned up, pecking me on the lips before laying her head on my shoulder. "Bingo." she said.

We walked in silence for awhile, Blake looking down and, seemingly contemplating something. "Jaune…" she spoke up eventually, looking at me with an entirely serious gaze. "I… I never want to have a baby… not again." she said. My eyes widened as she said this, only for a few seconds though. Then, I smiled, nodding towards her. "Okay Blake." "... that's it? 'Okay Blake'? You're not going to try and change my mind? Say how wonderful having children with you would be?" she asked. I shook my head, taking a turn towards my office as we walked across the road, Blake still looking up at me.

"There's a few reasons why Blake. For starters, we're not married. Before you ask I know you had one out of wedlock before but, I don't work that way. And second," I held up two fingers to Blake's lightly blushing face. "It doesn't matter to me if you have one kid or twenty. I love you, and if you don't want to have a kid, then we won't. As simple as that." I said, smiling down at her before I turned back around, seeing my office in the distance. Blake looked up at me, confused to say the least, before she spoke, "You… _do_ know that means I'm saying we'll never have sex again, right?" "Yep." I said, smiling down at her.

She just smiled, "Jaune… you are something else." she said, leaning up and pecking my cheek. "If it weren't obvious-" "You were lying? Not hard to figure out when you _said_ I'd be a great father earlier." I said, smirking at her as she blushed, nodding towards me. I leaned down, kissing her this time for a few seconds, both of us shutting our eyes as I cupped her face in my hands, her wrapping her arms around my neck. When we parted, I smiled down at her. "If you're lying though… well, I can't say I'd be _opposed_ to having a kid with you." I said, causing Blake's blush to graduate from light to _explosive_ in a matter of seconds. Likely since she remembered my previous statements. She looked up at me, fumbling for words for a few seconds before I just reached up, untying her bow and rubbing behind her left ear. She immediately relaxed, leaning against me as I heard her yawn. "How did… you know…" she muttered as I pressed harder, causing her to fall down in my arms. I just picked her up, bridal style, carrying her towards the office.

When I got there, I pushed open the doors, having left them unlocked. " _Maybe not the smartest idea when I have people trying to kill me all the time._ " I thought as I shut them behind me, draping Blake over my shoulder as I locked the doors. Ren had his own key, and anyone else could wait until tomorrow. I moved Blake so that she was riding on my back as I walked up the stairs to my own room, only to stop when I heard something coming from a room near the stairwell. It seemed to be a conversation, between two voices I recognized. Why they were _here_ I didn't know. I listened in.

"I'm telling you this could be _huge_ May!"

"Nora, you know I love you, but you are _insane_."

"I know, but seriously, we _need_ your skills to pull this off."

"Nora… as a sister, as my best friend. _Please_ understand why I can't agree to this… this _madness_."

"If it works May-"

"What if it _doesn't_ work huh? Did you ever think of _that_?! It's not like we're both still young punks in the Khan's! Think about everyone else! Think about Jaune! Neo! Velvet! Ton-Ton! Ren!"

"NO. Don't you _dare_ bring my Renny into this!"

"YOU'RE the one planning a suicide mission! What happens if and _when_ you die?! Ren'll go crazy, he'll start killing at random again and even _Jaune_ won't be able to stop him! He'll get himself killed by the Rose family, then what? You think they'll _stop_? They'll kill Jaune, Velvet, everyone we know, everyone we _care_ about! Think of _them_ Nora!"

"We can't just _let_ them get away with what they did to you!"

"So we're going to stoop to their level?! We're going to kill everyone of them we can get our hands on?"

They were _shouting_ at this point, Blake stirring on my back from the noise.

"YES DAMNIT! What other option is there!? You _know_ how many moles they have in the police force! You _know_ how easy it is for them to pay people off! The Rose family _own_ Vale May! The only way we're getting them out is to _end them_!"

"Nora… Nora please I… I... "

"May?"

They'd gone back to whispering now.

"I'm scared… I don't wanna lose you again… I can't… I can't, _do this_ anymore."

"What?"

"I can't… I can't keep _killing_ people like you can Nora, I can't risk my life everyday for nothing more than glory and money! I'm… I'm _scared_ Nora… I don't wanna die again…"

May was sobbing now, I could hear it through the walls.

"May…"

"When I was shot I lost _everything_. The people that cared about me either turned their backs or thought I was dead. The new Khan leader, he ordered me _killed_ Nora. He stripped me naked, tossed me in the river with a cinder block tied to my damn _neck_! I got _lucky_ Nora! Luck someone saw, cut the rope, and pulled me out! That's the only reason I'm _alive_!"

"I… I had no idea…"

May didn't seem to hear Nora's whisper, going on with her sobbing rant.

"I can't even say I'm _grateful!_ The person that rescued me, you know the first thing he did? He tied me up and took the last thing I had! The only thing I had _left_ Nora! I only got away because I _killed_ the old bastard!"

I couldn't take anymore of this, and gently pushed open the door, seeing Nora suddenly embrace the sobbing May, who was clad in a pair of purple pajamas with a mushroom on the center. I even saw a few tears drip down Nora's face as May started wailing into her shoulder, gripping tight to Nora's back. Nora stood firm, her head on May's shoulder as she pat her back, comforting her sister. It was almost five minutes later when May leaned back, eyes puffy and red as she sat back on her bed, looking up at Nora. "I _can't_ lose you Nora… you're all I have…" she said, her voice cracking towards the end of it. Nora pushed May down to the bed, leaning in and planting a kiss on her forehead. Nora was about to walk out when May gripped her hand, causing Nora to look back at her. " _Promise_ me, Nora. Swear on your _life_ you won't do it." she said.

Nora did something I never thought she'd do, "I swear." she said, smiling at her sister. May smiled back, right before she leaned down, her eyes shutting as she laid against the pillow. Nora took one last look back at her before she frowned, then she took out her revolver, turning around and walking towards the window. "I love you." May said, looking up towards Nora. Nora stopped, looking back over at her as I saw tears gathering in her guilty eyes. I'd never, _ever_ , heard Nora sound as sad as she was when she answered May.

"I'm sorry for being selfish May… I love you too."


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter twenty-one: Important questions

"Hello? Can you hear me?"

"I can hear you _just_ fine." I said, smirking slightly towards the phone in my hand, twisting the cord around my finger. I was in the building reserved as my office in Vale, and I'd just gotten a _very_ interesting call. "Ah good. You're the one they call, 'the fallen', correct?" the person on the other end said. It was hard to tell who the voice was, being as there was a fair bit of static and it seemed to keep fluctuating over and over again. Higher, lower, louder, quieter. I couldn't tell who it was, or even if the person was male or female. "I am they. I know you aren't calling for a visit, so what can the fallen do for you?" I asked, leaning back and throwing my legs up on the table. I heard some crackling for a few seconds before they answered.

"I need Pyrrha Nikos killed. It needs to look like an accident however. Leave no one the wiser that it was a murder. I'll pay double your usual fee." they said. I nodded a few times, feeling my smirk growing wider. My usual fee for killing a police officer _and_ making it look like an accident was 80,000 lien. So he was offering enough to essentially buy myself a _house_ … not that I'd need one, of course. "That's a very generous offer. Do I have a deadline?" "It has to be done before this Friday." they said. I frowned, gripping the cord a bit tighter. No wonder they were offering double my fee, if they needed it done on such short notice. Still… I couldn't really pass up that much lien, could I? Not to mention she'd seen Emerald. She was a loose end that needed to go, me getting paid for it was just a nice little bonus.

"Got it. The little slut will be dead by tomorrow. Has the money been wired?" "Half now, half later. That's how it works." they said. I smiled at the phone, whoever this was had been in the game for awhile, _and_ they were smart about money. I liked that. We exchanged goodbyes before I hung up, leaning back and blowing out air towards the ceiling. I looked up, frowning slightly as I saw Emerald walk in, dressed in only her mint green nightgown. I knew what that meant. "Lie Ren still lives, doesn't he?" "Yes… but, Neo is under Jaune Arc's care now. So…" she trailed off, shrinking back as I walked towards her, glaring down. She gulped, looking away from me as I placed a hand on her shoulder. "Take it off." "... of course…" she said slowly. I saw tears pricking her eyes as she slipped off the nightgown, letting it drop to the floor. She didn't try and cover her bare body. Enough failure had taught her not to.

"All fours Emerald." I said. I saw a tear run down her cheek as she complied, her head facing away from me. I turned around, walking over to my desk and pulling open a drawer. I grabbed out what I needed before I walked back over to emerald, rearing my arm back. "AH! I-I'M SORRY!" she said as I hit her rear with the whip in my hand again, an insane smirk twinging to life on my face as I struck, over and over. I was so absorbed I didn't even notice the pair of gray eyes _burning_ into my back from behind me, the sound of someone grabbing tight onto a nearby wall. Though, I _did_ hear the slight muttering. I couldn't tell what it was, but the feeling behind it made me pause, turning around. I shrugged when I saw nothing, going back to whipping Emerald for her failure as those eyes started walking away, a thought going through their head.

" _One day Emerald… one day._ "

…

"Chief Ozpin."

I looked up, raising an eyebrow and giving a smile as I saw a man walking in. What gave him away wasn't just the black hair, gray on the sides, but also the infamous white tuxedo. I could see the handle of his gun -a customized colt revolver- as he walked in the room. I motioned for him to sat down, he complied without hesitation. Glynda, who was sitting just next to him, glared over for a second before she stood, excusing herself to use the restroom. Of course, I knew she wasn't actually going to the bathroom, but rather just trying to get away from the man in front of me. "Commissioner Ironwood." I said. The way Vale was structured, he and I were both technically the heads of the police force. The difference? He was appointed by the city council, while I was given the position based on my thirty years in the force.

His half of the city was, admittedly, 'cleaner' than my own, but it's mostly due to all the faunus regulations he lobbied to get, whereas I refused to implant anything in the northern half of Vale. "I… have to ask. Glynda filed a report the other day, something about you meeting with one… Jaune Arc? A private eye? Might I ask the reason?" "He was a witness, nothing more." I said, blatantly lying to him. I trusted Ironwood, to a certain extent. I _wasn't_ about to trust him with this project that could change the face of Vale forever. I didn't want to assume anything but… the possibility of his corruption was too great a risk to just _rule out_. He nodded, "Then why wasn't he brought to the station? More importantly, why did _you_ interrogate him?"

"Don't use the word 'interrogate'. He wasn't a criminal. I've found over the years that people are far more receptive to a kindly old man asking something than some hot-headed rookie." I explained, looking behind him as I noticed a young man walking past, the name on the badge 'Winchester'. New recruit, worked under Ironwood's division. Ironwood nodded a few times, standing up before he pushed the chair back in, turning around and walking towards the exit. "Oh! I'm sorry sir!" I heard the captain of my division say as Ironwood walked away, heading off to the right. I sipped at the coffee mug in my hand as Pyrrha Nikos walked into my office, sitting down where Ironwood was just a few moments ago.

"Don't apologize, he didn't look where he was going either. What can I do for you dear?" I asked, smiling towards the young woman. She looked away from me, her face slightly red at the 'dear' bit. "Why do you do that?" "I'm sorry Pyrrha. You get to be my age you… well, you start calling everyone something different, simpler. Just so you can remember their names." I said, feeling a pang of guilt. I was lying through my teeth. The reason was much more tragic than old age, much more sad than an old man losing his memory. " _I won't tell her though. She doesn't need to worry about me. She's got enough to worry about as is._ " I thought as she spoke up.

"It's about this assignment you gave me… I'm attending a party? With Jaune?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me. I nodded, confirming her suspicions. She looked at the file again, and I patiently waited as she went through it, no doubt looking for the places she'd annotated and highlighted (I guess she _was_ still high-school age). "I understand why but… why me? Why not one of the more experienced officers? One of the older ones?" she asked. The confusion was clear, and I understood well enough _why_. _Why_ send in a teenager? _Why_ send in the captain herself? I had no doubt she had ten thousand questions. So, I decided to answer that one first. "Simple. It's not outside of the realm of possibility for you to be dating Jaune Arc."

" **WHAT!?** "

Her face burned bright red as she yelped, covering herself with her hands, despite the fact she was still fully clothed. Never did understand why women did that… "Y-You… you want me to-" "Act as his girlfriend for the party, yes, I do. Surely you're not absolutely _disgusted_ with Jaune are you?" I asked, giving her a knowing smile. She looked away from me, shaking her head as I saw her playing with a strand of her hair. She was nervous, the strand of hair was always her tell… maybe that was the reason I always beat her at poker. "Well… I mean, no. He's not… it's not that he isn't handsome -no! T-That's not what I-!" "Pyrrha. Calm down a moment. Think through what you have to say next." I interrupted, holding out a consoling hand towards her.

She nodded, taking a breath before she spoke, this time fluently, and less flustered. "Just speak honestly Pyrrha." "He's cute. He's nice. He's smart. It's not that I'd never date him, I can only _hope_ I'll find a man like him one day, but… that's not really the problem I'm looking at." she said, her face still read as she reached into her pocket, pulling out a small, black ribbon. " _Hmm… wonder where she got THAT from._ " I thought with a hint of sarcasm as she set the ribbon away, looking towards me. She wanted to know if I got the message. I got it, but then again, I guess she didn't know that if her next words were any judge. "Blake, sir. He already has a girlfriend. Won't she be… I don't know, _jealous_ about this whole thing?" "I've already dealt with the Blake situation. Besides, I'm not asking you to commit adultery -not that I can stop you- I'm only asking you to tag along and see if you can find anything incriminating on the Rose family." I said.

I couldn't help the smile on my face as her face flushed again, as she sputtered excuses about how she'd never commit adultery with Jaune. I knew she wouldn't, she was too good to do it. Though, that didn't mean I couldn't find her reaction amusing. She stopped after a second, and I kept that smile. "Pyrrha, what you do to sell that your Jaune's girlfriend to the Roses doesn't matter to me. Just… try not to act like a total stranger around him, alright? A kiss on the cheek should do it just fine." I said, smiling wider as Pyrrha blushed brighter. I wouldn't have been surprised if she fainted at that point. Instead she stood, turning around and walking away, shutting the door behind her without another word. I sighed as I leaned back, looking up towards the ceiling.

" _Pyrrha and Jaune… this is going to be interesting._ "

…

"Well?"

I shook my head as I looked over towards Ren, seeing him nodding a few times. I looked out among my gang, the sugar sloths, and I saw all of them holding their weapons, looking at me anxiously. I took a few breaths, trying to get May's sad expression out of my head. "May Zedong… will not be joining us. We're doing this ourselves." I said, hardening my expression as I heard cries of disapproval, some of outrage. I held out my hands, silencing them. I felt Ren place his hand on my shoulder, and I gave him a smile. At least _someone_ had my back on this. "I understand any anger you have… but we don't _need_ May to do this! Look at us! We're the toughest gang in Vale! We've been terrorizing the families for ten years now! Even the _Khan's_ don't hold a candle to us now! Right now, it's _our_ time to shine! After tonight, the Rose family will know they picked the wrong sloth to poke!" I yelled, slamming my fist into my palm.

They let out cheers, rallying cries, a lot of things. They held their weapons ready as I nodded, jumping down off the podium as Ren followed behind me. I looked back towards him, "Renny, I need you to sneak in and open the doors. We can handle the rest." I said, giving him a small smile. He nodded, holding open his door as I jumped into the passenger side of his car. I saw my men getting into their own cars, mostly vans, before driving off, all of us heading towards the docks. I held up a cigarette, rolling it between my lips before I lit it, blowing a small puff of smoke out the window. Ren had already put the top down, so I wasn't worried about it. "Just like old times huh Ren?" I asked, smirking over towards him.

He smirked right back, "Yeah, except we've still got clothes on." he said, causing me to blush slightly. I rolled my head away from him, blowing smoke out the window as I held the cigarette in my fingers, twirling it slightly. I chuckled, "Yeah… hey uh, Ren… you love me, don't you?" I asked, looking over towards him with a frown, snuffing out the cigarette. He looked over at me, raising an eyebrow before he nodded. I didn't expect him to speak, it was an obvious question. Now though, there was a hint of concern burning behind that meaningless gaze. The cold gaze that I'd fallen for. "I know, stupid question but… I'm going to be going through withdrawal soon and-" "Wait, since when have you cared about 'withdrawal'? You were _just_ smoking." he interrupted, looking over at me as we pulled into a red light.

I looked away from him, my face burning slightly. Why did I know he was going to ask that? "Well… I'm not going to be able to smoke or… drink or… do a lot of those things for awhile…" I said, looking back over towards him, wringing my hands together. I tended to do that when I was nervous. Ren raised an eyebrow, but then his face tinted red, his eyes widening as he looked down. He always was smart, he'd figured it out already. "You mean you're…" "Yeah… yeah." I said, giving him a small smile. Neither of us wanted to say it, but we both knew what I was getting at. He looked back ahead, driving forward through the light, still red, without a care, heading towards the dock. We sat in silence for awhile, until he pulled into the dock that is, parking.

He looked over at me, "Why did you come? Why didn't you stay home tonight? They'd have understood." "It's not… I'm the leader alright? I was a khan. Whoever would lead the raids back in the day would almost always be the one that organized them." I said, frowning slightly. I felt knots of guilt welling in my chest, May's teary eyed gaze accompanying them. I felt a hand over my own, and I looked up to see Ren grasping my hand in both of his. His gaze was filled with a sort of stubbornness I _knew_ I couldn't get around. I expected him to say something but… instead he just leaned in, kissed me on the cheek. He smiled at me, walking out of the car and closing his door. He opened mine, but before I could get out he placed a hand on my shoulder. "Close your eyes Nora." he said. I complied, only to feel the familiar cloth on my lips, the sickeningly sweet odor.

One whiff, and I blacked out.

…

"Sorry about this Nora."

I muttered as I set the ether soaked rag in the back seat. I picked up Nora, careful not to hit her against anything, and gently laid her in the back seat. I reached into the glovebox, grabbing out a piece of paper and pen. I set the paper on the roof, and I quickly scribbled out a note to Nora in it, before I laid it down on her belly. I smiled down at the note, hoping that she'd understand what it meant. I shut the car door, walking towards the back and popping open the trunk. I smiled when I looked inside, " _Good thing I came prepared._ " I thought as I reached in, pulling out my weapons of choice. I grabbed out two .22 pistols, integrated silencers of course, and my trusty MAC-10. This time though, I screwed on a silencer to the end. I set the pistols at my waist, the MAC-10 in my coat, and shut the trunk, locking the car. Nora had a key on her anyway.

I started walking towards the large warehouse, the place where a ship was unloading some less than legal cargo. I stopped just behind a nearby crate, nearly face-palming. I'd almost forgotten. I reached into my coat, pulling out a small, dark green mask, two holes cut out for eyes. I pulled it on over my head, pulling my hair through a hole in the back before looping it down my coat, feeling my Kevlar vest brushing against it. I took out my MAC-10 and took aim towards the door. Two guards. Both armed with assault rifles. Both wearing bullet-resistant vests.

Four bullets later, they were dead on the ground, my gun smoking. I dashed towards the door, sliding up against the wall as I reached over, pushing the door in. I looked inside, quickly dashing in towards a nearby crate as I noticed no one looking in my general direction. I used my foot to kick the door shut behind me. A few people looked over, but they went about their business a second later, ignoring it. The ship had already pulled in, men shouting out as they started unloading the cargo, large crates marked with 'Property of the Atlesian Military' stamps. They were weapons, not a doubt in my mind about that. I dashed across the open expanse, rolling back into cover as I looked up, seeing men standing on the catwalk. They needed to go first.

I ran towards the stairs, crouching low as I took out my pistols, walking up behind two guards. I aimed my right pistol, then my left. I fired twice, two shots to the back of the head for each of them. I caught their bodies before they could fall, and I set them down gently. I turned back to the right, seeing one of the guards walking over her, his face sporting a bored expression. A second later, it sported no expression at all, the _expression_ blown all over the wall behind him. A quick burst of MAC-10 fire would do that. I dashed towards him, not a _chance_ no one would've seen that, and ducked down near the edge of the catwalk. I aimed across the way, only one person left on top. I squeezed the trigger, he was dead in seconds.

I looked down, seeing men pointing up towards the catwalk, mostly towards the blood-spatter rather than me. Good, no one had spotted me yet. I walked towards the edge of the catwalk, reaching into my coat. If my suspicion was correct, there was about to be one _hell_ of a fireworks display. I held the vaguely round object in my hand before I pulled out the pin, tossing the grenade towards the water. " _Come on… bingo._ " I thought as I saw the grenade bounce on the ground, people's eyes widening as they jumped back, trying to get away. It was a pointless effort, if my guess was right.

BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!

I felt the heat as the cargo started detonating, killing most of the people around it, sending the entire place into a panic. I turned around, firing towards the men coming up the stairs, no longer caring much about silence. I would just use the chaos to open the doors, let Nora's crew in. I dashed towards the stairs, jumping down them three at a time. I landed into a crouch, firing on two of the random workers running towards me, likely for the staircase. They weren't armed. They weren't fighting. I didn't care. I ran towards the large, warehouse doors. Or rather, I ran for what looked to be the small office next to them. I dashed in, shutting the door behind me and slamming down on a red button labeled 'OPEN'. They _really_ made it hard to screw this job up.

I heard the doors groaning as they were pulled apart, revealing a stunned group of sugar sloths right in front of it. I ducked down as I heard glass breaking, bullets flying at me. I blindly fired back up, looking over and seeing Nora's crew scrambling to find cover, firing as they went. I saw the fire shifting focus as I poked my head up, aiming towards the few men left that could fight back. They were in cover, but all it took was one foot outside of it for me to knock them down, another bullet to finish them off. I vaulted over the window, shattering what was left of the glass as I dashed for the next bit of cover, firing as I went. I slid down next to one of Nora's older crewmen. He looked at me, raising an eyebrow. "Where's-" "I told her to stay back. We need to stop that ship!" I said, pointing towards the ship, as it had started pulling out already.

The man nodded, motioning his men forward. Some of them shouted as they charged forward, blindly firing ahead of them. I saw the men in cover firing at them, killing more than just a few of them as me and the older crewman snuck around. I flanked right and he flanked left. We exchanged fire, killing the only four men that still had guns in the compound. The rest of Nora's men dashed ahead, running for the ship as they crew pulled up the gangplank, running for their lives. The older crewman I'd seen glared towards it before he smirked, reaching behind his back. I saw most of Nora's crew start throwing grenades towards the ship, most of them detonating on impact. One of them held out what looked to be a rocket launcher, firing towards the back.

The effect was devastating, the whole ship smoking as it's turbines were destroyed, the entire thing grinding to a halt. I stood, watching as the men stopped with the grenades, running to the Atlesian munitions and throwing whatever else they could, firing towards the ships hull. There weren't _many_ grenades left granted, but those that were… oh, they did the job _just_ fine. I saw men jumping overboard as the ship started tipping over, leaning towards the side opposite of us. Fires were breaking out as Nora's crew shouted and cheered, high fiving each other and patting each other on the back. I crouched down and aimed toward the water, putting a bullet in any sailor that managed to survive the carnage on the ship. We couldn't have _any_ witnesses for this. Not one.

A few seconds later I heard the screeching as the ship's large center smashed into the wooden deck of the warehouse. I heard the rumbling as Nora's crew ran back, trying to get away. I did as well, hoping that if the warehouse collapsed, it would kill any crewmen left on the boat. If they didn't drown first of course. I dashed through the warehouse doors as one of the men stopped, that same older crewman from earlier. He nodded towards some of the others, barking orders as they started nodding, running to the outside of the warhouse. My eyes widened as I realized what they were doing, placing down those large, circular objects. I heard the term 'crater charge' thrown around as I realized why this was going to be such a big hit against the Rose family.

They were destroying the warehouse.

I ran back towards my car, my mind flying back to Nora. If she was there, still unconscious in the seat, then she could very well be caught in the sheer amount of flying debris. I knew what kind of damage _one_ crater charge could do. But _forty_? There might not even be a dock _left_ when they were done. I bolted towards my car, letting out a sigh of relief as I saw Nora still lying down, my car the way it was just a few minutes ago. I reached into my pocket, unlocking the car and jumping into the driver seat. I heard the crater charges going off as I burned rubber, reversing as I saw a large piece of metal hit where my car was just a few seconds ago. " _Just made it._ " I thought with a sigh of relief. I mean, yeah, it had survived the _onslaught_ of bullets from just a few hours ago with Coco, but a giant piece of metal versus a tiny piece of lead? I didn't like my odds.

I started driving off, taking off my mask and putting it in the glove box. Hopefully we wouldn't get stopped, it'd be hard to explain the silenced, military grade guns I still had on me. With that in mind, I drove a bit more carefully than usual, looking back towards Nora every few seconds, making sure she was still knocked out from the ether. I drove all the way back to her hideaway before I got out, walking towards her apartment. When she woke up, I knew for a fact she'd join me. So I left her in the car, forgetting all about the note I'd written her…

…

"Ugh… Ren you sonuva…"

I swore as I sat up, rubbing my head. The familiar smell and feel of ether on me. I looked around, finding I was still in Ren's car, but I was in front of the Rexford. The mission must've been successful. I started to get up when I felt something on my belly. I looked down, seeing a small piece of paper, laid face down. I grabbed it, flipping it over. I felt tears spring to my eyes, a smile plastered on my face as I read what it was. The beautiful, kinda hard to read cursive, I knew Ren's handwriting anywhere. " _Ren… I'm so glad I didn't pull the trigger all those years ago._ " I thought, sitting up and pocketing the note. I got out of the car, locking it back with my own set of keys before I walked towards my home. I crumpled the note, dropping it in a nearby trash can. No one would read it, no one but me. The note read:

" _We've taken some big leaps Nora. Come inside, it's time we take the biggest leap of all._ "

 **(a/n- You know, this is actually the first (possibly not last) chapter in JALR agency where Jaune and Blake don't make an appearance. This time we've got a Nora and Ren (I ship it if it wasn't clear by now) centered chapter. Along with a little Cinder and some Ozpin (not in the same place mind you). We've even got some shady ironwood here… and yeah, I put a little Cardin joke. Not that hard to find, but props if you caught it. Anyway, see you in the next one!)**

 **(a/n- Also; bonus points if you can explain why Nora and Ren's conversation seems to be under Hays Code regulations (it involves them not being able to say certain things... I probably just gave it away, didn't I? Oh well, not like it was much if a** _ **secret**_ **anyway.)**


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter twenty-two: Mind games

 **(a/n- You know, I haven't done an Omake in almost ten chapters. This one is more or less what would've happened if I'd taken JALR Agency and… completely flipped it on it's head. It also shows one of my regrets for JALR Agency. You'll see why in a second. Roll the footage! Wait… crap, wrong medium. Just read it, you get the idea.)**

 _Omake: The shutterbug_

I dashed behind a nearby wall, reaching up and grabbing at my Camera. I felt my ears twitching as I listened. Not a sound. So quiet I could've heard a pin drop. I looked over, dashing towards the open door before I slid to the ground, twisting the lense on my camera just slightly, hearing it sliding into place as it focused. It was painfully loud in the silence. I stood, creeping towards the door, stepping into the building before walking down the hallway, keeping my eyes and ears peeled for danger, just as always. Strangely, the place seemed deserted as I made my way towards the large, open space. The entire building built into the back of the warehouse, just the place I'd stumbled into.

I slid behind one of the nearby crates, looking at the sides of them. They were marked with familiar stamps of food companies, nothing possibly illegal. Gently cracking one open though, revealed there to be nothing even _close_ to food on the inside. Guns. Grenades. Ammo. if it exploded or killed people, it was in there. I held up my camera, hearing the familiar clicking, seeing the bright flashing, as I moved around, taking pictures from as many angles as possible. I only took four of them granted, I needed to save some for the rest. I went around the room, opening all the crates labeled 'food' or 'medical supplies'. Guns. Explosives. Drugs. All those kinds of things were aplenty. I kept taking pictures. " _I think I just found my story._ " I thought.

I let my camera fall down onto my neck as I felt my ears stiffen, the familiar sounds of footsteps coming up behind me, as well as a slow, ominous clapping. "Looks like we've got a pest in the house boys." I heard a deep, cocky voice say. I heard a chorus of chuckling as I slowly turned, seeing six men holding their guns up, a few of them having cigars in their mouths. The one clapping, the boss no doubt, had one between his fat lips, both of them twisted up into a smirk that somehow looked closer to a snarl on his fat face. "We got us a shutterbug." he said, taking out his cigar and letting out a puff of smoke. I coughed, waving my hand in front of me, as I looked down at the man. He looked pretty short, so why these guys that were twice his size would ever follow him was beyond me.

I gulped as the man stepped closer, close enough I could nearly count his eyelashes (they _were_ pretty long eyelashes to be fair). He looked up, putting a small, black fedora on his bald head, the same kind of fedora the other men were wearing. He was the kingpin no doubt. "I'm gonna list what you did wrong bunny, then what you did right. Wrong: Breaking and Entering. Trespassing. Getting caught. Taking pictures. Wearing a long skirt, and of course being an animal. Right: Not trying to run away. Being scared of me, and wearing such a low-cut shirt. Not to mention being a cute little number~" he said, his eyes gazing at me as I crossed my arms over my chest, covering the small window of cleavage I had (what little of it there was). Granted, it was also the only real _shirt_ I had to use for something like this.

He started walking over to the right, reaching into his suit pocket, "Now doll, there's two ways this can go. Good, or bad. Good: You hand over the camera, take off the clothes, and pose for a little photo shoot. You get the camera back, but we get the film. Bad: You try to run, or do something else stupid, and my boys will light you up faster than a cigar. Got it? So get to strippin', or get to dyin', your call." he said, smirking as I felt my face burn bright red. To pose for these men… lose my story… then again, I wouldn't lose my _life_. That was something at least. I gulped as I slowly placed the camera on the ground, sliding it over to the man as he grabbed it. "See? Not so hard. Now, you gonna make with the show or what?" "...Please… no…" I said, looking down at the ground as I felt my body trembling.

"Knew you were cute on the outside, didn't think you had a voice to match. Make you a deal, lose the shirt and the skirt, keep the underwear right? Do that, you do a little dirty talkin', and we let you go. Sound good?" "For you it doesn't." I jolted my head up as I heard the familiar voice, my eyes widening as I saw a man standing there, flanked by two women. There was a car right behind him, a white sedan with a gold trim. The man was wearing, fittingly enough, an all white suit with a fedora, a gold belt around it. The girl to his left was clad in a cyan blue dress, a white boa around her neck as she clung to the man's arm. The other was dressed the same way, but replacing the blue with red, and the white with black. The man himself had the familiar deep blue eyes, a small smile on his face exposing pearly white teeth as the men looked towards him, some of their eyes widening.

"Ah! Mr. Arc! Just in time for the show." he said, gesturing back towards me, the men keeping their guns trained. I gulped as Jaune stepped over, keeping that eerily calm smile on his face as he spoke, "I don't think I heard that right. Could you say it again?" he asked. The man took a step back, some of the others exchanging nervous glances. I started walking forward, slowly grabbing my camera as the unnerved kingpin spoke again. "I uh… I said you're uh… just in time for the show yeah! Caught this little shutterbug ditzin' around, muckin' with our plans." "Did you bother to ask why she was here?" he asked, leaning back slightly as I saw another car pull up, looking the same as the first. Four men got out, all of them holding guns similar to the one's the men already there were. Difference was, these four were in uniform, and they took up positions nearby, all of them in cover and aiming their guns at the others.

"She was here takin'-" "I said did you ask _her_. Did you?" Jaune asked, his eyes beading down on the man as he kept stepping back, trying to keep his distance from the eerily calm man, who was somehow more threatening than all the guns in the room. The man, of course, shook his head. Jaune sighed, "Tsk. Tsk. Tsk. If you didn't, _I_ will. Velvet? Why are you here?" "I was following the lead you gave me Jaune." I said, smirking slightly as the other man's face paled, his eyes darting between me and Jaune. He stepped back, pressed against the wall as Jaune started walking over, dropping the smile for a more neutral expression, one that was _disturbingly_ like Ren's. "You… you sold me out!? After all we been through?!" "Yeah, turns out stealing a ship with _my_ profit on it isn't the _best_ way to stay in my good graces." Jaune said, holding up a hand.

 **SNAP!**

 **BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG! (other machine gun noises)! BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG! (Something other than BANG! please)! POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW! (nope that's even worse, go back to BANG!) BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG!BANG! (actually try POW! again) POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!POW!**

 **(Nah, BANG! works better) MAKEUP YOUR MIND!MAKEUP YOUR MIND!MAKEUP YOUR MIND!MAKEUP YOUR MIND! (Okay okay we're done!)**

The other men were suddenly riddled with bullets, falling over in bloody piles as the leader looked at Jaune in fear. Jaune, the man who'd just produced a large revolver. "You… you cheated me you sonuvabitch!" "Cheated? It looks that way doesn't it? But the truth is," Jaune placed the pistol right in between the man's eyes, giving him a slight smirk. "The game was rigged from the start." At that Jaune pulled the trigger, the man falling back against the wall, sliding down into the floor and slumping over at Jaune's feet. He holstered the revolver in his coat, walking towards me as I fiddled with my camera slightly. I set it on the nearby crate as Jaune walked over, standing right next to me. "Sorry you didn't get your story." "Yeah… that was a shame… have any more friends you need exposed?" I asked, giving him a slight smile. He chuckled,

"Oh yeah, I've got a few."

 **(a/n- Yeah, that** _ **regret**_ **was not making Velvet a reporter (I mean her weapon in the show is a** _ **camera**_ … **why did I not think of that?) Anyway, this is taking what happened with JALR (jailer since I apparently never mentioned how it was pronounced) Agency and going down a dark path. I'd have probably made** _ **this**_ **JALR agency had I not already seen so many different mafia AU style stories for RWBY on the sight. I figured hey, we don't have many detective AU stories, why not make one? You know… after writing this out, I'm half-tempted to make this a real story… eh, who knows? Stranger things have happened.)**

"How can you be so broken inside?"

I glared down at the man, flicking my blade off to the right, riding it of the blood as I started walking forward. Meanwhile, he sat there, clutching at the dead woman he held in his arms, trying to stop the blood flowing from her neck. "How can kill like it's nothing… cause so much _pain_ …" he said, tears streaming from his eyes. I just kept walking, my lips twisted into a small smile as I stopped right in front of him. I held my blade back, the way I was taught, ready to end him. "Worst part is you do it all…" I rushed as he shouted,

"All with that _damn_ _smile_ on your face!" **(a/n- yep, totally just used Jaune's own words against him)**

…

"GAH!"

I looked around, trying to remember where I was as I saw the familiar walls and roof coming into focus. I looked down, letting out a sigh of relief as I saw the scars. I didn't have those when I was younger… these last years of peace weren't a dream. I stood up, hearing something hit the mattress behind me. I ignored it, walking over to the bathroom and shutting the door behind me, turning on the sink. I looked up, those familiar blue eyes, my mother's eyes, everyone always said, gazed back at me. They weren't cold and dead like they used to be, now there was emotion. Now there was passion… now there was _life_. " _I beat her once by being alive… now I've gotta stay that way if I want to win for good._ " I thought with a wry smile as I splashed some water on my face, as if it would wash away the painful memories. When I looked back up though…

" _Worthless._ "

"YAHA!" I yelled, falling back on the ground, rubbing my eyes as I looked at the mirror. No… no, it wasn't real. There was no _way_ I'd just seen my mother's face, heard her voice… it wasn't real. Sure enough, when I stood and looked at the mirror, I saw only my own, terrified eyes gazing back at me. I sighed, turning around and walking back towards my bed. I fell back down on it without much thought, pulling the covers back over me. Until, that is, I felt two arms snake around me. "You okay?" I heard Blake's tired voice ask. I turned around, finding two bright, nearly glowing yellow eyes gazing at me in the dark. I looked up, seeing her cat ears curled up slightly in her exhaustion, that same tiredness showing in her eyes.

"Yeah… just a nightmare. That's all." I said, giving her a smile. She smiled right back, leaning in and pecking my cheek, nuzzling back into my chest. I looked down, moving my hand up and gently scratching behind her ear. She rolled her head on my chest, not even _trying_ not to purr this time. "You're so cute like this." I muttered, and if Blake's blush was anything to go by, she heard me. Not that I cared, I hadn't exactly been _that_ quiet about it. I felt her move over, to the point I was flat on my back, her on top of me. She pulled away from my hands, to the point that she was sitting on my stomach. She smiled down at me, leaning over and kissing me. "How cute am I now~" she said, pinning my hands above my head, smirking down at me. I smirked up at her, my face burning slightly.

"You're more sexy than cute, not that I'm complaining." I said, smirking right back at her. She leaned down and we kissed again, my comments seeming to give Blake back that same energy as she had last night… or, maybe it was two nights ago? I didn't know if it was early morning or late at night, not that I really cared. My attention was on the beauty right in front of me. When she pulled back she smirked, looking down. "Someone's excited~" "With you so close, how could any man not be?~" I asked, smirking right back at her. She moved back, tugging at the edge of my boxers as I saw her give a predatory gaze at me. "Want me to help with that~" "I-If you c-can…" I said, feeling my voice shake at what she was suggesting. She smirked as she sat up, tugging at the edge of her nightgown,

"Oh, I can. And I _will_."

…

" _You've gotta be kidding me._ "

I thought as I leaned back, crouching on the fire escape, covering my eyes to hide my blush. " _Great, first Ren disarms me, Cinder punishes me, and now THIS?! Really!?_ " I thought to myself as I stood, starting to climb up the escape. I saw Mercury standing up on the roof, raising an eyebrow down at me. "What're they-" "They're having sex." I said flatly, walking towards the other edge of the roof. He sighed, slowly shaking his head before he turned, walking with me to the other side. "Remind me why you're embarrassed? We've probably done exactly what they're doing, and I _know_ you've seen me." "Yeah, you. You're the only guy I _want_ to look at without any clothes on." I said, looking out over the cityscape.

I felt an arm around my shoulders as I looked over, seeing Mercury smiling at me. "I don't know if you're flirting, complimenting, or proving how devoted you are… but thanks anyway." he said, leaning over and pecking me on the cheek. I sighed, leaning my head onto his shoulder as I looked out at the city lights, all sparkling. I felt Mercury move his hand down a bit as I took a sharp intake of breath, trying to avoid screaming from the pain. He'd moved over one of Cinder's marks. I couldn't help but think… I'd failed Cinder twice. Last time that happened… "Mercury… when Cinder finds out-" "I won't let her hurt you. Not again." he said, moving behind me, wrapping his arms around my neck in a reverse hug.

"How?" I asked, looking up at him, red eyes meeting black ones. I saw that determination in his eyes, that same anger and fear I saw he had when he looked at Cinder. He was afraid of her, but now, it seemed like his anger at her for hurting me was starting to outweigh his fear. "I'm going to do something _incredibly_ stupid." he said. I felt my eyes widen as I turned, wrapping my arms around him, feeling tears gathering at the edges of my eyes. We kissed, both our eyes shutting as I tried to forget what he just said, what it meant. It didn't work. When we leaned back, looking up at him, as pitiful as I could make myself. "You mean-" "Yeah…" he trailed off, standing up and walking towards the edge. I saw him pull out his revolver, loading in a few shells.

"I'll come back for you Emi, and I'll bring you her head."

… **(a/n- Some sexual content in this bit, just so you know (saying this so that I (hopefully) don't have to change the entire thing to Mature just for this one chapter)**

"Ah, Vale. It's been too long."

I muttered, smiling as I stepped off the plane, my two eldest (that were still alive and not dishonored) following me off, our servants carrying our luggage past the airport security. A few bribes here and there, and our weapons were through. Just like that. Aureo frowned as she stepped out, her eyes covered with sunglasses as she reached into her coat. I could tell she was tapping her fingers on her revolver. Waiting. She was anxious to kill Jaune, I could tell she was. Aryl was a bit more calm, looking around, wide-eyed. "Woah… so this is Vale…" she said, her eyes wide and nearly _sparkling_ as she gazed out at the city. We'd arrived early in the morning, so the lights still being on, the sun just rising. I had to admit, it _did_ look quite beautiful.

"June." I heard a familiar voice say. I smiled as I looked down, walking towards the familiar woman. She was clad in that same, red dress she seemed to always wear, with the white jacket over it. I knew for a fact she was at _least_ carrying two guns inside of it. Not to mention the four bodyguards on standby. I walked over, the woman holding out her arms as I embraced her, patting her on the back for a few seconds. "Summer. I haven't seen you in _ages_. You're looking well." "You are too. You simply _must_ come visit more often." she said, turning around and walking towards a long limousine. I wasn't surprised, I _had_ told her I was coming. The four of us walked towards it -my youngest was still at home with her nanny- before a familiar face opened the door.

"Hi aunt June!" Ruby said, waving at me with that familiar, bright smile of hers. I couldn't help but smile back as I stepped into the limo, sitting beside Summer as Aryl took the seat next to Ruby, Aureo sitting across from them. I looked at Ruby, the denim jacket, the red and black polka-dot skirt, the silver eyes and black hair with red highlights… oh she looked _just_ like her mother did when she was fifteen… other than her mother didn't have that much light in her eyes. "As much as I love seeing old friends, I have to ask. Why _are_ you in Vale? Don't tell me you _just_ came for my party tomorrow?" she asked, giggling slightly. She may have been a stone-cold monster (much like myself) but she was still _so_ childish sometimes.

"I'm looking for my son. He's… well, got a lot to answer for." I said, glaring out the window, trying to hide my furious expression from my friend and her daughter. Her daughter who, if I had to guess, was an even more skilled killer than Aryl or Aureo. Summer nodded, Ruby frowning towards her for a second before resuming her joyful conversation with Aryl. "I see… well, if you happen to see him, just remember-" "No doing business on Rose family grounds. I know Summer." I said, giving her a slight smile. She just nodded, leaning back in her seat, shutting her eyes as she faced her head towards the roof. I reached into my pocket, looking over at her to make sure her eyes were shut. Then I drew my revolver.

"Good try."

Summer said, her eyes having snapped open as she pulled my arm over, a knife pressed against my neck as Summer had spun around, wrapping her legs around my chest, squeezing the life out of me as my head was pressed against hers. My revolver fell to the ground, Ruby quickly scooping it up. I smiled up at Summer, "You're strong." "Never skip a leg day." she said, taking her knife away from my neck, instead wrapping her arms around it, pushing me further into her chest. I didn't bother trying to move, knowing better than to try and get out of any of Summer's holds. If I did I knew it would be a fifty-fifty chance she'd kill me or strip me down, tying me up. She smiled down at me, "Did you bring any toys?" "Summer!" I whispered, feeling my face burn slightly, "Not in front of the kids."

She smirked, "Answer the question or I'll strip you right now." "Okay yeah, I did." I said, suddenly afraid. I had spent a good portion of those girls lives making sure they feared, respected, and most importantly, were _like_ me. If admitting Summer was better than me in private was all it took to keep up the illusion, then I'd do it. "What kind?" "Leather for me… you mind rubber?" I asked, giving her a slight smile, both of us still whispering. Summer just nodded, keeping that same smirk on her face as she moved around, me sitting upright as she sat behind, looming over me. "I'll enjoy beating you." "Not if I beat you first." I said, smirking back up towards her. I had to hold back a yelp as I felt her move a hand behind my back, beneath my skirt, toying with the waistband of my panties, tugging it up. I could hear the smirk in her voice as she spoke, "String? You're just _asking_ me to do it."

I looked down, feeling my face start burning as I saw her move a knife, the faint sting of it against my flesh as I looked down again, seeing a small, what equated to a string bikini in the floor. "Uncross your legs." she said. I complied, knowing how this little game went. I felt her move it again, this time beneath my shirt. "Make a sound, I'll tear it off.~" she said. I didn't speak as I felt the sting, biting the inside of my cheek as I felt the tugging on my breasts. I looked down, watching as the two strings that were around my shoulder pulled back. I looked behind me, seeing Summer setting the torn remains behind her back. "Top three. Unbutton them." she said, smirking as she tapped on the top of my button down shirt. I felt her loosen her grip as I complied, unbuttoning three of them. Then I moved my hands back, hiding my smirk as I grabbed my own knife. Summer let out a quiet, adorable yelp as I moved my hands into her dress, pulling out the remains of her underwear. White with red flowers on them.

Now it was _my_ turn to order. "Slip off the heels." she complied of course, her bare feet, pressing into my stomach as I felt her move again. Though, what more could she do? I was already naked without the shirt and skirt, so there wasn't anything else for her to take off of me without being noticed. We stayed like that a minute, me taking the time and hiding the remains of my underwear beneath the seat, the girls all but oblivious to the warfare me and Summer were engaged in. A few minutes later, the limo driver stopped, and the girls got out. "Give me and June a few minutes girls. We have business to discuss." Summer said, smirking at me. The driver, he'd likely been informed about this, shut the door. Summer knew what she was doing when she got the windows tinted. The driver got back in his seat, driving towards the back of Summer's house.

I got sloppy, distracted for a brief second, and the next thing I knew I saw my skirt fly to the floor, unzipped. I saw Summer's hands move around to my front. "Don't move." she said. I complied as I felt her move around, to the point she was in front of me, sitting on my lap, her right hand behind my back, her left pressing into my stomach. She slowly moved it down, causing me to let out a grunt. I reached behind her, knife in one hand as I made her think I was doing something else, slipping my hands beneath her dress and grabbing at her rear. She smirked down at me, her breathing picking up as I trailed my hands up too. I smirked as I cut the strap on her bra, sliding it out from behind her, it landing with my skirt. "Kiss me." I said, capturing Summer's lips. She tasted vaguely like strawberries.

She kissed back, the same thoughts running through our heads no doubt. " _I'll never let you win!_ " Of course, one of us had to win _eventually_. I took the chance, moving my hands around, moaning as I felt one of Summer's hands tugging back on my hair, the other pushing into me. I held up my knife, slowly but surely cutting into her dress. After a second she pulled back, looking down to find that her dress was split down the middle, nearly exposing her breasts. "I win." "Guess again, look down." she said. I did, my eyes widening as I noticed that, while I'd been focusing on her dress, at some point she'd moved her hand from my hair, cutting the remaining buttons from my shirt. We both shrugged off our remaining scraps of clothes, hers utterly destroyed and mine almost completely destroyed. I mean, I still had my skirt and she still had her jacket so… that was more than _usual_.

"Hold up your tits." "Spread your legs." she responded, smirking as we both complied. She held up her breasts with one arm as I spread my legs, her hand poised and ready. We sat like that for a minute, staring at one another's eyes, both waiting for the other to make the first move. I already had my hands cupping her rear, her hand just a few inches from penetrating me. "Mrs… oh… perhaps this is a bad time?" I heard a voice ask. I looked over for a split second, seeing the driver standing there, shutting the door. I looked back, only to throw my head back in the air, my hands flying off of Summer and gripping the seat as I felt her move off of me, my eyes starting to gloss over. "You looked away. You lose." "D-Damn it… AH!" I said, fighting through the waves she had set me on, her other hand moving from her breasts and onto mine, tweaking them as I tried to gain back some semblance of control.

Of course, that didn't really work.

"Close, but no cigar." she said after what felt like hours. I was spent, laying on the floor of her limo as she stepped out, one of her servants bringing her a long, white cloak, and a white bathing suit, another bringing one of my yellow bathing suits, tossing it next to me. He also tossed in a red towel. I looked up at Summer, "Get out and clean yourself up." she said. I knew better than to argue as I stood, grabbing the towel and swimwear, stepping out of the limo and into the open. I dried myself off as best I could before slipping on the bathing suit. Summer walked over, light squeezing my breast before she gave me a hug, I could _hear_ the smirk in her voice. "You might be in charge in Mistral,"

"But in Vale, _I_ run the show."


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter twenty-three: The Autumn (totally not punning the word Fall here)

"Don't get too handsy with her, alright?"

I sighed, smiling down at my beautiful girlfriend as I leaned in, pressing my lips against her forehead. "Don't worry, I'll save that for you." I said, feeling a smirk tug at my lips as her face flushed. She always looked so cute when she was blushing. I reached up, lightly pulling at my collar, _god_ I hated wearing these monkey suits. How could Ren wear them all the time? I reached into my trench coat (yeah, I wasn't ditching that), smiling as I lightly pat my revolver. Ready for anything. I was about to walk out the door when I heard Blake speak up again. "Jaune wait!" I heard. I turned around, seeing Blake rushing towards me, just as I had my hand on the doorknob. She reached up, slowly pulling the bow from her head, the string coming undone as she held up the ribbon. She reached over and, without a word from me, tied it onto my left arm, just below my shoulder.

"Promise me you'll come back." "I always do." I said, leaning in and kissing her one last time **(a/n- that uh… that sounds** _ **way**_ **darker than it should.)** before I turned around, pushing open the door, out into the streets of Vale. I saw the throngs of traffic sweep through the streets, an electric current on a wire. When somebody threw the breaker, one side stopped, another side went. The only ones that didn't stop were like me, walking along the unbroken sidewalk. There weren't _many_ of us granted, but we were there. Vale was the opposite of Mistral in that regard. In Mistral, the only people that owned cars were wealthy, and the rest of us had to walk on the sidewalks, most often filled with cracks and bumps and holes (other than the ones supposed to be there of course). " _Guess that's why I still walk… never could get used to driving._ " I thought, smiling slightly as I looked up, searching for the brief patches of starlight through the vibrant orange streetlights.

That was the one thing I hated about Vale with a passion. There was no reconciliation for it. The skyline. " _In Mistral it's all sky… here it's all building and streetlight._ " I thought. I looked down again, my eyes wandering around the streets. I saw children playing in the streets, their clothes tattered, faces smudged in dirt, their eyes wide awake despite the hour. There were two of them, kicking around a wad of paper. I looked over to the right, and there was another child. This one was smiling at the ground, saying a few words to himself once in awhile. His eyes made it clear where his mind was, and it _wasn't_ on earth. He was on cloud nine, up with the other druggies. I couldn't help but frown at him, " _In Mistral, kid might work his childhood away, drink a little too early… but we never had it THIS bad._ " I couldn't help but think as I turned away. If you lived in Vale, you had to get used to turning a blind eye to injustice. I hated doing it, but I had to _survive_ didn't I?

After a few minutes, it was like you'd crossed into a whole other world. The litter on the ground was gone, replaced by clean sidewalks, free of even the _tiniest_ crack that wasn't meant to be there. There were barely any people on the sidewalks, almost everyone driving the newest model car to the latest fashion show. Vale wasn't like Mistral in that way. It was two cities. One incredibly rich, the other incredibly poor. I looked around, "There both rusty bars of iron. One just looks better than the other." I muttered. I saw police officers running near _constant_ patrols, anyone that even _looked_ suspicious being stopped and ID'd. It didn't seem legal… but then again, who was there to challenge it? I saw a woman sitting against a nearby building, bleeding from her stomach. A police officer walked over. Did he help the woman? If it were northern Vale, the cop might've called an ambulance, secretly hoped she died before it came at worst.

Southern? They put cuffs on her and drug her into a cruiser.

If she survived, she'd be charged with loitering, thrown into the county jail. If she didn't, no one would ever hear about her. She'd been _dying_ , but they didn't care. Commissioner _Ironwood_ only cared about one thing. His image. I kept walking, reaching up and lighting a cigar, taking a breath in before letting it go, making sure not to it fall to the sidewalk by accident. Wouldn't want them to arrest me for 'dirtying the city' or some other stupid law they'd made. I looked down at a slip of paper Chief Ozpin had given me. " _Yep, this is the place._ " I thought as I looked upward. One of the tallest buildings in Vale, a shining monument to the builders of the city, the poor, Mistralean immigrants who built this city. " _Yet now we won't even let them in…_ " I couldn't help but think as I walked towards the building, pushing inside the revolving door.

"Sir?"

I looked over, letting out a puff of smoke as I looked to the receptionist. He was a fairly tall man, dark skinned, bald, a pair of spectacles on his nose. "I'm here to see Pyrrha Nikos." "Certainly Mr. Arc, I'll ring her up." he said, his voice layered thick with an accent I couldn't quite place, a gentle yet, somehow creepy, smile on his face the entire time. He picked up a phone, dialing a number before I walked over, hand on my gun. He was about to call her whenever he looked over at me, "Something the matter sir?" "How do you know my name?" I asked, squinting slightly at him. It wasn't exactly _unheard_ of for someone to know who I was in _Vale_ , unlike in Mistral when it's a dead giveaway something's wrong, but for him to refer to me as _Mr. Arc_ … something wasn't right. He smiled, "Ms. Nikos told us to expect you. A blond man with deep blue eyes." he said. I slowly nodded… I wasn't sure why but, something still didn't feel right.

"Yeah… I'm here to get her to relax a little. Ironwood's been riding our asses again to get the Torchwick case solved." "Ah… it must be troubling work detective." he replied. Major red flag _and_ a minor red flag. Torchwick Case is closed, minor, and she reports to chief Ozpin, _major_. You'd think he'd know that… then again, he might not. Too early to be sure. I looked around the lobby, lightly drumming my fingers on the table. "So… how long you been working here?" I asked. My eyes never left the phone. He was still trying to dial Pyrrha. I had a feeling he wasn't trying to dial _Pyrrha_ at all. Or if he was, it wasn't to tell her I was here. He shrugged, "I've worked here two years now." he said simply, raising an eyebrow at the phone. I could _tell_ something was up with this guy now, it wasn't that Pyrrha wasn't picking up the phone, the call wasn't getting _through_. The way he was dialing the number was wrong too. With the interconnected phone systems, you had to dial the number of the floor, _then_ the number of the room in order to dial it.

" _Not a chance you've worked here for two years._ " I thought. That was three flags, one minor and two major. I walked around, coming behind the desk and giving the man an easy smile. I needed to warn Pyrrha, but first I had to contact her. "Let me have a go, she won't ignore me." I said. The man stepped aside, and the second I stepped past, I saw the gun in his coat. He wasn't working here, there wasn't a doubt in my mind of that now. I dialed the right number, looking down and noticing that Pyrrha was on the top floor, not good. It made it that much harder to get her out. I dialed the number, holding it up to my ear. It rang for a few seconds before Pyrrha's familiar voice answered. "Hello?" "Hey, it's me. How you doin' dollface?" I said, smirking and adding a flirty tone in hopes she'd understand something was up.

…

I slowly stood, walking over towards the phone, raising an eyebrow. Here I was _just_ putting on my dress when I saw that the phone was ringing. Was Jaune here already? I picked up the phone, "Hello?" "Hey, it's me. How you doin' dollface?" I heard Jaune's voice say, in a tone that made me blush. That already set a strange feeling in motion. Why would he be calling me dollface when he already had a girlfriend? More importantly, why was he _calling_ me in the first place, it should be the man downstairs -Madison- calling me if I had a visitor. Something was off. "Hey, did you pick up my smokes? I ordered them from Atlas so… yeah, I'd kind of like to know where they went." "No… sorry, I don't know where they are." Now I _knew_ something was wrong. For one, I'd never heard Jaune call his cigars 'smokes', and two, he smoked _Mistralean_ cigars, not Atlesian. My only guess was that he was talking in some sort of code. Someone was listening in.

"Yeah, sorry but we might have to walk. Department's too cheap to buy a new heater for the car. I about bought my own for it. Hehe." he did a half decent fake laugh, I'd give him that. Ironwood was _far_ from cheap, so that wasn't it… heater. That was the code. He was telling me to come armed. I figured I'd try my hand at this, try and find out what's going on. "So, is the lobby packed? Lot of people there?" "Nah, only two. Me and the man at the desk. Two years rolls by in a flash huh? I've never even _met_ the guy before." he said. I felt my eyes widen, Madison had been working that desk for almost six years, and if the man Jaune had met at the desk has said two years, and Jaune had called me… uh oh. "Yeah, I'll be up in a few minutes to help you pack your stuff down alright? Just hang tight." "Okay… I'll see you in a minute." I said.

I hung up the phone, walking over to my cabinet and grabbing my handgun. It was standard issue, a Springfield XD 45ACP, the smallest gun I owned. I'd pack my shotgun but, it was in the cruiser in the parking lot at the moment. I grabbed a small box next to it, opening it to find five, preloaded clips. I slid one into the gun before I reached down, grabbing a long, black band. I usually wore it in my hair, but tonight I figured I'd let it flow loose. Glad I did. I pulled it up around my left thigh, grabbing the clips and sliding them in through the cut in the dress near the legs. Unless someone was on the ground looking up, they would be invisible. I flicked on the safety of the gun before I pulled slightly on my dress, setting it between my breasts. I looked up in the mirror. " _Guess these things are for more than just looks._ " I thought with a small smile before I walked into my bedroom, shutting the door behind me. I chose the bedroom thanks to it's lack of windows, in case someone was possibly ready to snipe me. I put my hands in my lap and waited for Jaune, hoping he was just being paranoid about something.

Of course, I knew he wasn't.

…

" _Good, she understood._ "

I thought as I stepped slightly to the right, reaching into my pocket before hanging up the phone. With my body blocking it, he no doubt didn't see me reach behind the phone and subtly cut the power cord, making it so any calls he sent through wouldn't make it. " _Just in case…_ " I thought as I stepped back, nodding towards the man. He nodded back, his easy smile all the same as it was a few seconds ago. When he walked over he picked up the phone again. He didn't check the cord, no one ever did, and started dialing that same number again, still not knowing why it wasn't working. This time though, I knew the reason. I walked towards the stairs, no _way_ was I standing in an elevator with the very real threat in the room, and started my way towards the top.

Nothing happened in the stairwell, surprisingly, and I was at the top floor before I knew it. I pushed open the door, looking around before I stepped in. No suspicious characters, nobody at _all_. Good, it meant less potential threats. I walked towards Pyrrha's door, number 12, and gently pushed it open. When I looked in, I could _immediately_ tell why she wasn't in the main room. Mostly on account of the large windows inside. This was basically _asking_ a sniper to fire at her. "Pyrrha?" "JAUNE!" I heard her shout, pulling open her bedroom door, ducking down and dashing over to me. I felt her wrap her arms around my neck, closing the door with her foot as she slammed her lips against mine. I was shocked for a second before I melted, pressing her against the wall. I felt a twinge of guilt as a head of black hair flashed through my mind, but it passed quickly. " _No… I'm not cheating on her… we're doing this as our cover. We can't let them know we're suspicious of them_." I thought as Pyrrha pulled back.

"Missed me?" "More than you know. Now… we heading out? Or are we going to have some fun in the cruiser~" she said, smirking at me. I had to admit, she was playing the role of the thirsty girlfriend _incredibly_ well. If I didn't know this was a cover, just looking in, I'd think we'd really been dating for awhile, and we'd not enjoyed each others company in _far_ too long. I smiled, "We're heading out tonight… then after we might have a little one-on-one, okay~" I said, smirking at her as I looked down, gently laying my hand on her hip. I would've laid it on her rear, like I would've with Blake in this kind of situation, but… that was a line I wasn't willing to cross for a cover up. That and, I'd specifically promised said hot faunus that I wouldn't get too handsy with Pyrrha, and I was _not_ about to go back on a promise. _Especially_ not to my Blake.

She held up her hand as I looped my arm through hers, slowly walking towards the door. I leaned in, and to anyone watching it no doubt looked like I was kissing her cheek. "You have a gun?" I pulled away. She nodded before leaning over, _actually_ kissing my cheek. My face was bright red, but Pyrrha's… well, Pyrrha's just looked a little pink. It honestly could've been some light makeup she had on. I turned to face the doorway leading out through the staircase when I noticed something. On one of the doors, the one just before the staircase, there was a small puddle slowly leaking out. At first I thought it was water, leaking through the carpet. Then, I smelled it.

"GET DOWN!"

 **BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

I felt something force me and Pyrrha back as I fell, slowly tilting my head around. The series of explosions had come from the apartments of the other residence, the gasoline I'd seen pouring from the doorway having ignited, slowly spreading in front of the door with the stairs. "Pyrrha!" I shouted, turning around and seeing her laying down. I shed my coat, setting the gun and the bullets to the side as I laid it over her, desperately trying to put out the flames lapping at her dress, as well as her skin. It took a few seconds before I pulled back, letting out a sigh of relief when I saw that the flames hadn't killed her. She looked up, her left eye shining at me, filled with tears and nearly closing. I looked down, my eyes widening as I saw what had happened.

One of those explosions must've been _right_ next to Pyrrha, and she'd taken the brunt of it. The right side of her face looked suddenly more like charcoal, with bright red skin swelling her eye shut. Most of her dress was gone, exposing a badly burned right side to me, and when I moved her, her entire body, damaged or not. Now, if she wasn't burned and things had turned out differently, I might've been highly aroused. I mean, she was _gorgeous_. But right now, all I could feel was panic and worry. I looked up, my eyes widening as I saw some of the supports coming down, the fire eating through them. " _Someone planted bombs… dammit! I cut the phone line! How'd they know!?_ " I thought as I saw something I hadn't expected to see.

The woman from Mistral.

The woman, who had sicked a group of bounty hunters on me (that I'd immediately turned on each other) and the woman I'd shot, was standing right in front of me, holding a small pistol in her hand. I saw Pyrrha grab her gun, aiming at the woman. The dark haired woman didn't flinch as she fired a round at Pyrrha's other arm. "AH!" she shouted, falling without the support of her left arm. It was a miracle she could even _move_ it given how damaged it was. She must've been running off sheer willpower. "We meet again, Mr. Arc. The little _bastard_ who smashed my precious violin. You're honestly too smart for your own good." she said. I was about to say something when she started talking again.

"You figured out our man downstairs was a fake, of course he _was_ an idiot. You figured out we'd planted bombs in the elevator, and you can _imagine_ our man's surprise when he looked in and found no Pyrrha. She figured out she was in danger thanks to you. You knew how to turn my hunters against each other, and against me. I-" she fired a bullet at my gun, which I'd _planned_ on using to shoot her before she finished talking. I saw it slide out of my reach, just a few inches away, near a burning support beam. She smirked, her eyes going wild as she walked over. She kicked me back, stomping on my chest with her high heeled shoe and, likely unintentionally, making it _very_ apparent she wasn't wearing anything beneath the dress.

"Don't you know how to respectfully _listen_?" "Don't you know how to wear underwear? You _really_ need to shave by the way." I said, smirking up at her. I hoped to get her flustered, hoped to get her to loosen her foots position on me so I could knock her over, hopefully stab her with Crocea Mors. No such luck it seemed, as she only smirked right back. "Looking up my dress hmm? What a naughty boy you are. Hmm… no. You don't deserve the mercy of _death_." she said, stomping down on my chest. I felt myself slightly relieved at that. If she didn't kill me right now, that meant I had a chance to get rid of her. She smirked wildly as she leaned down, "GAH!" "Instead I'm going to take you. I'll beat you, violate you, I'll make you _mine_. You're cute enough for me to enjoy, and you're strong enough for me to enjoy _breaking_ you~. I'll never let you forget who your ass belongs to~" she said. She'd stabbed a piece of wood into my shoulder, splitting it off and tossing it away from her.

She leaned down, surprising me by forcing her lips on mine, nearly stabbing her tongue into my mouth. I was so shocked I didn't even bite down, or fight as I felt a shiver run through my body. She pulled back, smirking down at me, "A smoker too? We'll kick that little habit. Don't worry though, I'll get you addicted to _me_. Before you know it you'll be _begging_ me, pleading with me for just one more taste of your master~. First though," she stood, taking the piece of wood she hadn't stabbed into my shoulder. "I have to deal with this red-haired bimbo." "AAAH!" Pyrrha yelled, and I winced as I saw her jam the piece of wood into Pyrrha's right heel. **(a/n- … I had to go back into** _ **that**_ **episode… and watch that scene… to find which heel it was… the things I do for this story… I tried** _ **so**_ **hard to get that scene out of my head. It** _ **almost**_ **worked… okay, back to a week of binge watching RWBY Chibi to get it out of my head again.)**

She moved over, trailing a hand down the side of Pyrrha's face, the normal side. "Poor baby. Who's going to save you now?~" "I'm not saving her, "

 **BANG!**

"I'm killing _you_." I heard a voice say. I looked up, my eyes widening as I saw the long, black cloak at the end of the hallway, the revolver in his hand. Mercury Black, one of the most infamous killers of Mistral, had just murdered who I could only guess was The Fallen. At least, based on how she went about trying to kill us, that's who I _assumed_ it was. She fell forward, her body crumbling on the ground as the man walked towards me. I moved over, grabbing my gun and aiming it at him. He put his gun away, holding up his hands. "I'm not here for you. I promised I'd bring her head, and I will," then he reached down, grabbing a large knife, "Well, _part_ of it, anyway." he said, walking over to the fallen assassin. He reached down, pulling her head back and placing the knife just beneath her hairline.

"TRAITOR! **(a/n- haven't heard** ** _that_** **since TR-8R... hey,** ** _someone_** **had to say it.)** "

The Fallen screamed, rearing her hand back, punching Mercury off of her. Mercury let go of the knife, which she grabbed easily, slamming the handle into Mercury's forehead as he crumbled, holding it. Then she reached down, grabbing her gun and firing at his knee. Seeing my chance I dashed forward, gritting my teeth as I took the wooden spike from my shoulder. She aimed at me, but I just slid down on my knees, ramming her spike into her right heel. "GAH!" she shouted, firing off a round ineffectually at the wall as I stood, staggering back a bit. She glared at me, until I put my barrel right on her forehead, dead center. "Tell my sisters I said hi."

 **BANG!**

She fell back, a hole through her forehead as she fell back, her mouth hanging open as, fittingly enough, a support beam fell down right on top of her, ensuring she was did. "Live by the flame.. _Die_ by the flame. Ow…" Mercury said, slowly standing up, right before he crumbled to the ground, clutching his knee. He grabbed his knife, sheathing it before he fell, and I could've _sworn_ I saw a few tears drop to the ground. "Damn… can't even walk…" he said, slowly pulling back his hood. My eyes widened when I saw his face. I'd seen him before but, at a distance. This close up… well, he didn't look _that_ much older than I was. Heck, we could be the same age for all I knew! He shut his eyes, tears dripping off his face as he laughed. "Funny… I hated my old man for so long… yet now… I live just like him… and I die just like him." he said, falling to the ground.

I frowned towards me, gritting my teeth as I hoisted Pyrrha up, leaning her over my shoulder. I grabbed Mercury's hand, causing him to look up. "Get up! We need to get out of here!" "Just leave me… I'm won't make it ten feet out there. Hehe… guess this is some… real _fucked_ up kind of redemption huh?" he said, smiling up at me as he panted. I ducked lower, the smoke was making it kind of hard to breath. I glared towards him, reaching down and wrapping my arm beneath his shoulders, grunting as I pulled him up, shoving my gun into my trench-coat (which was still wrapped around Pyrrha so… not that easy mind you). He looked over at me, his eyes clouded in confusion as I guided us around a burning support beam, towards the stairs. "Why are you… helping me?" "Shut up and at least _try_ and walk! We need to get out of here before the whole floor collapses!" I yelled. Who asks questions when you're running out of a building that is on _fire_ and _collapsing around you_? Seriously!?

I stopped in front of the door. There was no way through it, the gasoline from the other apartment had moved further, blocking the open door. Mercury sighed, "Guess we're all fucked… great." "No we're not! Not yet!" I said, grunted as I hoisted the assassin up, ignoring the blood falling from his knee as I hoisted him over one shoulder, Pyrrha over the other. Thankfully Pyrrha was relatively light, and Mercury… well, I could at least _carry_ him. I crouched lower, "What are you doing?" "Something _incredibly_ stupid!" I shouted, dashing forward. I felt the heat lapping at me as I dashed forward. Time seemed to slow as I saw my feet stomping on the flames, extinguishing them for brief seconds before they reignited beneath my shoes, reaching up to strike me. I saw the flames lapping at what little remained of Pyrrha's dress, as well as my coat. I felt myself burst through the door, only for more fire to be on the stairs, slowly moving down. I made a split second decision, putting my foot on the railing and jumping.

Time seemed to resume as I fell, shuddering as I hit the ground. I slowly stood, leaning against the railing as I looked up. We'd fallen two floors, maybe thirty feet at most. My legs hurt like hell… but I mean, it was that or _burn_ to death, what other choice did I have? "You… You are a _crazy_ bastard." Mercury said as I set him down, him leaning on the railing. I shrugged, giving him a slight smile as I wrapped an arm around him, helping to guide him down the stairs. We walked in near completely silence for the way down, the only sounds Pyrrha's ragged breaths as I hoped she wouldn't die from her injuries before I could reach the lobby. "You know… me and her are gonna die soon." "Not if I can call 911 first. Just need to get to the lobby…" I said. Then I remembered.

I'd cut the lobby's phone line.

"Dammit! I forgot I cut the lobby phone already." "Why do you need to call 911? They'll see the fire." Mercury said, raising an eyebrow at me. I… actually, he had a valid point. The hospital and the fire station weren't _that_ far from this building, and no doubt _everyone_ would be calling 911 about the explosion on the roof of one of the largest buildings in Vale. I just nodded, giving him a slight smile before I kept guiding him down the stairs, until the point where we finally reached the lobby. Sure enough, I already saw a few firemen running towards me, guiding their hose out from there. I saw a few reporters nearby, some paramedics running towards me. Two of them took Pyrrha as a third took Mercury, the last one guiding me towards the exit, a few reporters that must've been nearby taking pictures and shouting questions over everyone else.

It was all a blur as I felt the medic set me down, stitching up the wound in my shoulder as I watched Pyrrha' being led out on a stretcher, the last medic repairing Mercury's leg. The reporters crowded around Pyrrha, no doubt getting as many photos as they could of the naked and half-burned police officer for the papers. The medics guided me and Mercury into the back of the ambulance as it started moving through traffic, faster than any of the other cars would ever dare to go. I saw them working on Pyrrha as Mercury turned to me. "Why'd you save me?" "What? Did you think I would just _leave_ you there to burn to death?" I asked, giving him a slight smile. He didn't smile back, if anything looking more confused.

"Do you… know, who I am? What I've done?" "I know enough Mercury. You're a hitman. Don't expect me to call you out on it though, criticize you… I mean, that'd be really hypocritical of me, wouldn't it?" I said, chuckling slightly. The ex hitman criticizing the man that was now a hitman, who did things _far_ more humanely than he did? Yeah, that's a _laugh_. Mercury raised an eyebrow, "Then why didn't you let me die?" "You'd still owe all those people you killed. One life for hundreds isn't really a fair trade, now is it?" I asked, keeping that easy smile on my face as I leaned over, feeling the slight sting of the stitches on my shoulder. He looked up at me, his eyes slightly widening at my statement. "Think about it. You took away everything they could ever be. You ended their hopes, their dreams, their chances at happiness, that's not even _counting_ what you did to their families. You can tell me the death of _one_ man is going to make up for that." I said.

Mercury shook his head, frowning at me. "No… what else can I do?" "Well, look at what I did. I started trying to _save_ people's lives, make them better, instead of ending them. You can't be _all_ bad, if you were trying to kill The Fall-" "Cinder." he interrupted. I raised an eyebrow, Cinder? Was that The Fallen's real name or, was he talking about the cinders of the fire we just escaped? "Cinder Fall… that was her real name. Don't ever call her The Fallen again. It's what she wants." "Then what do I call you? Mercury Black _was_ your assassin name, right?" I asked. I mean, the amount of sense it would make for him to use his _real_ name as his assassin name was next to none. There was no _way_ he was dumb enough to- "Nope. Real one." I sat there for a few seconds, trying to process what he just said…

" _He uses his real name… are Mistral police THAT dumb nowadays?_ "


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter twenty-four: Capture and Recovery… maybe not in that order

 **(a/n- Looking at a few reviews that caught my eye. "Why would his face go bright red from a simple kiss on the cheek, when he is literally having sex with Blake." The answer is simple, because it** _ **isn't**_ **Blake. If it was Blake, he wouldn't be embarrassed at all, but since it's** _ **Pyrrha**_ **, someone he's** _ **literally**_ **only spoken to three times before last chapter, he's caught off guard.**

 **Second one: "I swear Jaune's character is based off of Valentine from Fallout." If you mean Nick Valentine, then you are CORRECT sir! Though it was probably rather obvious since, in Chapter two, I stated that the original name for this series was "Jaune** _ **Valentine**_ **: Vale Detective. So yeah, that's what his character is based on.**

 **Last one: "... Needs work. Kinda dumb to be honest." Okay… how? I mean… if you don't like my work, that's your opinion, fine. Just saying it 'needs work'... what kind of** _ **work**_ **are you talking about? I'm not a mindreader here. Though I have to say I'm really surprised this is the first negative review of JALR agency I've seen so far, given that it's now Chapter twenty-four and has been up for… over ten months? Man… figured I'd have realized it was** _ **that**_ **old at this point.**

 **Anyway, enough of the author's note. I mostly did this since the first two were guest reviews that I felt I needed to respond to but, since they're listed as guests, I can't just private message them to confirm them. The last one… well, I went back and tried figuring out what was 'dumb' about my work. There could be a lot of things (like the shit grammar in some of the earlier chapters) but, just telling me it's dumb… I can't fix that. That and, I felt the need to respond since I realized it was the first negative review I've gotten for JALR agency (not on this** _ **site**_ **mind you… Rubicus and Beacon Pet Center have a few of those… the former very justifiably, I won't lie (it was terrible, not gonna lie)). Aaaaanyway, enough rambling. Let's get to what you came for.**

 **Ps. I'm fine with criticism, most of it is rightly justified, but just telling me my work 'needs work'… at least tell me** _ **why**_ **it's bad so I can make it better. I hate having to clarify this.)**

"Where is he!? I want to see him!"

"Ma'am, please, calm down."

"Where's my Jaune!?"

"Blake?" I asked, looking off to the right. I was still dressed the same, the doctors only needed to dress my wounds and I would be good to go… if a little sore for a week or two. I saw the door fly open before my little kitty dashed in, her eyes puffy and filled with tears as she wrapped her arms around my chest, sobbing before she reached up, crying as she kissed my neck, cheeks, lips, I wasn't even sure she was _trying_ to aim at this stage. I just held her close, shutting my eyes as I heard her sobbing, telling me how glad she was I wasn't dead, how angry she was that I got hurt. All kinds of things really.

After a few minutes I felt her stop, resorting to just a few sniffles and whimpers here and there. I opened my eyes, smiling at her as I placed my hands on either side of her face, wiping away at her tears with my thumbs. "It's good to see you too kitty cat." "I… you fiend…" she muttered, leaning against my chest as I felt her jump up, laying next to me as she rubbed her head against my shoulder. I smiled at her as I reached up, gently petting her ears. " _Odd, where's her… oh, right._ " I thought as I saw the same, black ribbon that served as her bow still tied to my upper arm. I heard her purring as I leaned over, kissing her cheek. "Glad you two are having fun." I heard a familiar voice say.

I looked up, smiling when I saw Ren walking over to me, though… I was slightly off put by _his_ smile. I didn't even know his mouth _could_ extend that wide. "What happened with you?" "You tell me." he said, laying his hands down to his sides as he stood. I looked over him, trying to figure out what was either wrong with him, or _incredibly_ right with him. It was kind of hard to tell which one it would be to be honest. " _Hmm… no marks on his neck. No rope burns on his wrists, his hands? Wait… HOLY HELL!"_ I thought as my eyes widened, meeting his eyes. The thing that caught my attention? Well, that was rather simple.

The ring on his left ring finger.

"You're getting married?" "And you're becoming a godfather." he said, smirking slightly as I felt my eyes widen even more. Blake was catching on at this stage, looking over at him. It took her a minute to notice the wedding ring, likely even more to process the godfather comment. "How's Nora-" "Hellooo~" "Taking… it." I finished, smiling slightly as I saw Nora walk in the room. Her eyes were starry and nearly closed, a smile on her face as she hummed slightly. I looked down and, sure enough, there was a ring on her finger, one that had two blue diamonds on the front. " _Ren spared no expense on you did he? Then again… it IS Nora._ " I thought, watching as Nora pat her (still the same size) belly. She was dressed in what looked to be a black t-shirt and jeans, something more normal than what she usually had on. She was leaned against Ren, who was dressed as always, and smiling at me. Something she _never_ did.

"When did you find out?" "Just the other night. Oh! What do you think we should name it!?" Nora asked, looking at me. I raised an eyebrow… she was asking _me_ what to name her baby? There was no specter in the room behind me. I turned and, sure enough, it was just me, Ren, Nora, Blake, and the baby in Nora's belly that was still just barely there. "Me?" "Well, you _are_ it's godfather and my best man, seems like you should have _some_ input." he said, smiling down at me. I returned the smile… Ren had actually discussed this with me once, so when he told me I would be his best man, I wasn't all that surprised. I looked down, frowning as I tried to think of a name… a combination of genes from the Crazy drug dealer and the ex-professional poisoner? There were a _lot_ of things to choose from.

"How about Lapis?" **(a/n- look at a color wheel and you might get the joke.)**

"Hmm… not bad." "I like it!" Nora said, smiling at me. Ren looked at her, raising an eyebrow. I did the same, it was _very_ odd for Nora to agree with anything I said, even if it meant she couldn't be right about it. So her _instantly_ liking my name choice? _Very_ unsettling. Then again, she _was_ the one that would be carrying around the baby for the next nine months so, fitting enough she would have final say on the name. "Lapis Ren… or should it be Lapis Valkyrie? Lie Lapis? What are you going with?" Blake asked, deciding to jump in the conversation. Nora looked at Ren, who only shrugged. Nora just smiled, shrugging and giving a look that said 'We'll figure it out later'.

"So… what about you two?" "What?" me and Blake asked Nora in unison. What _about_ us? I mean, I had a _pretty_ good guess as to what she was going to say, but at the same time, you could never be sure with Nora. "I _mean_ when are you two taking the leap?" "Oh! Uh… well…" I said, looking away from everyone. I saw Blake's face burn slightly as she looked away from me. I mean… it wasn't as if I was _opposed_ to it but… at the same time… "Well Nora… me and Blake haven't been dating _near_ as long as you and Ren. I mean… it's not even been a _month_ yet. Give it time and… someday we will." I said, smiling at Blake. She looked back at me, her face burning bright red at that statement. The most likely reason? I'd said someday we _will_ , not someday we _might_.

And if an Arc is able, he _never_ goes back on his word.

…

"Mrs. Rose?"

I looked up, frowning as I saw Clyde walking towards me, his hands behind his back. I floated back away from June, letting my hands slip off her hips as I approached the edge of the pool, hoisting myself out of the water as I looked up at Clyde. "This better be good." I said, hoping it wasn't something trivial. If he'd gotten me out of the water, away from June, to tell me anything _less_ than the house was being stormed by the VCPD, I was going to kill him… scratch that, I'd let Ruby do it. He held out an envelope, lowering his voice as he leaned down. "It concerns Mr. Arc. Our people in the papers have intercepted a story about an attack, one he was apart of. They are wondering if they have your approval to place his name or picture in the papers." "Hmm… thank you for bringing this to my attention. Contact our people and tell them to remove any mention of Jaune Arc in the papers, we can't have this kind of exposure." I said.

I walked over to the side of the pool, wiping my hands off on my towel before I took the envelope from Clive, him returning inside to relay my instructions to the papers. I sat down, opening the envelope and pulling out a few photographs, as well as an attached letter. The photographs were in black and white, as all photographs were, but even then I could recognize the handsome man in the picture, even with his injuries. In the next picture there was Pyrrha Nikos, badly burned on her right side, her left side still as striking as ever. I flipped it over, my eyes widening as I saw none other than Mercury Black. Most wouldn't recognize him, but the gray hair and the black cloak were enough for me to tell.

I looked at the letter, reading what had happened. "So the Fallen has fallen… fitting enough. Glad I hadn't gotten around to hiring her yet." I muttered, closing the letter and setting it on the table. I grabbed my wine glass next to it, sipping at the familiar red liquor as I saw June getting out the pool, the water slowly slipping off her thin frame, her cold, dead eyes gazing at me with that familiar intensity of hers. She always did have that, even when we were kids. Even before she became the monster she is now… or maybe, she had _always_ been a monster, and was only now not trying to hide it. "What's that about?" "Nothing much, a few idiots botched a job." I explained. I wasn't lying, there _was_ another part in that letter, about how a gang known as the 'Sugar sloths' had destroyed one of our cargo ships. It would set us back almost a _month_ , but at the same time, it _also_ gave me an excuse to finally get rid of them.

"Hmm… about your party-" "It's been postponed." I said. June raised an eyebrow, but wisely decided against questioning me. We talked about nothing major for several minutes, June asking about business and blatantly ignoring the elephant in the room. The reason the party was postponed. Eventually she lost interest, turning around and walking back towards the pool, diving in next to her daughters, who were busy playing Marco Polo with Ruby. I smiled, it was hard to believe that the three of them were the most dangerous killers in remnant, watching them play around like the children they were. It was almost endearing… almost. "Oh Summer~" "Yes Tai?" I asked, smiling as I turned around.

The blond hair, familiar voice, and the cigar in his mouth were all I needed to see to know my husband. Of course, the brilliant lilac eyes were another hint of it. He was clad in, oddly, a three-piece suit. I mean, _I_ was just in a bikini after a swim. What was he doing? He walked over, kissing me as I kissed back, wrapping my arms around him. "Eww! Mom! Gross!" I heard Ruby say as the other children were laughing, June giving a subtle glare towards my husband. We parted, smiling slightly at Ruby. Sure she was subservient to me and me alone… but that didn't mean I couldn't let her have a _little_ fun did it? "Why the get up Tai? Going somewhere?" " _We're_ going somewhere actually. Come on." he said, grabbing my hand and pulling me towards the house. I pulled back slightly, at the very _least_ I needed to put some real clothes on.

"Tai wait! I need to get dressed first!" "No need, just trust me." he said, smirking slightly as I felt my cheeks tinge pink. Something was up, it always was when he gave me that cocky little smile. Rather than walk over to the limo, he walked over to one of his own cars, a simple thing really. Expensive sure, but not overly so. Tai nearly shoved me in the back before he got into the front, slowly pulling out of the driveway. He never did get used to being chauffeured around, always liked to drive himself. "Tai! I'm wearing something that equates to _underwear_! Where are we going!?" "We're going to pick up your dress from the dry-cleaners. You'll get changed and we'll head out to dinner alright? I booked us a reservation at our old place, remember?" he said, smiling over at me.

I sighed, slowly nodding. He was referring to the old Vacuo place, a high end restaurant that the two of us frequented when we first started dating. It was a modest place among high end restaurants honestly, but they still had _remarkably_ good food. I just sat towards the middle, slightly scrunched in on myself as I hoped no one saw me riding in the back of the car in just a bikini. Wouldn't be the _most_ embarrassing thing the press had on me, but still, it was up there. At least I was wearing _something_ this time around. He pulled into a parking garage near the restaurant before he got out, leaning back and kissing me before he did so. I just sat there, waiting… and waiting… and waiting.

" _What's taking him so long?_ " I thought as I looked out the back window. Something was off… he never took _that_ long to pick up a dress. Something must've been keeping him. I looked around, my eyes widening when I realized something. Four cars were parked in the same level as I was, that level being the fourth one. All of them looked the same, black sedan's with tinted windows. I saw the doors open, men in white and red masks stepping out. " _White Fang? What're they doing here?_ " I thought as I saw another sedan pull up, right next to mine. This one was different, I could tell immediately. For starters, it had the markings on the bottom of the windows, bullet-proof. Just like the windows in this car. The other thing was that they weren't tinted at all. I could see plainly the woman inside.

Sienna Khan herself.

She stepped out of the car, dressed in a black tux with a red tie, smiling as she opened the door; Tai never locked it. "Get out of the car. We need to talk." she said, keeping that smile on her face as another two men stepped out of her car. One of them was her Black Hand, Adam Taurus. He held a red katana in one hand, a sawed-off double-barrel shotgun in the other, aimed right at me. The other man was just a grunt, holding a tommy gun in his hands, aimed at me. The other men started walking over, surrounding the car, securing the entrances to the building. I slowly gulped as I started moving out of the car, making it clear I had no weapon on me. I stepped out of the car, one of the other trucks moving over as Adam walked to it, opening the trunk. Sienna produced a pen as the other grunt handed her a notepad. "Strip down, leave the bikini." "Fine." I said, sliding out of the lower half before unclipping the bra, tossing them both in the car.

Sienna looked down, "Double D?" "Just one D actually." I said, not bothering to cover up or blush. If she knew I was embarrassed, she could exploit it. I knew how she worked well enough. At least, if rumor was to be believed. She nodded, motioning towards Adam. Adam walked over, carrying a set of handcuffs. I felt myself pinned against the trunk of Tai's car, the handcuffs slapped on behind me before he moved down. Someone must've been handing him things, since the next thing I knew I felt rope binding my legs together, tying my arms to them as I felt myself forced to bend slightly backwards. "Is this really necessary?" "You're a trained killer, of course it is." Sienna said, walking over. I fought back a gasp as she slipped her hand into my cleavage, feeling around and pulling out a small knife, one I always carried with me just in case. She set it in her own, slightly smaller, cleavage before she did the same with my rear, but finding nothing this time.

I felt myself lifted as Adam carried me to the van with the open trunk. I raised an eyebrow when I saw someone else in there, this one in a similar situation to me. Although, for some reason, they'd let her keep her purple underwear. She had long blonde hair, defiant green eyes glaring at Adam as she started shouting through her tape gag, struggling against her bonds. She, unlike me, had her hands bound to a ring on the cars roof. Her legs were folded beneath her, she was facing the side of the car, and her rear was jutted out. If I had to guess, they hadn't been as gentle with her, given the bright red state of her large behind. Adam shut the door a second later, leaving me and the much more bound woman in the car. I felt us start moving as I moved back, reaching my less restrained feet towards the woman.

I moved my toes around, years of experience in kidnapping situations having made me rather adept at using things other than my hands for situations just like this. I pulled the tape off with my feet, the woman gasping for a second before shouting obscenities at the drivers, how the _animals_ should let her go. That is, before I stuck my feet in her mouth. "Stop shouting, or they'll come back here and gag you more thoroughly, got it? Shout again and I'll just gag you with my feet." I said before pulling back, wiping my feet on the sides of the seat. _Man_ she had a lot of saliva. The woman nodded a few times, trying her best to move, but only succeeding in making her rear and chest jump like crazy against their bonds.

"Who are you?" "I'm Glynda Goodwitch, deputy chief of the Vale Police Department. These _animals_ have us captives! How are you so calm!?" she whisper yelled, taking my threat about using my feet to gag her seriously. I was _more_ than willing to do it, this bitch sounded _incredibly_ irritating. I didn't particularly _care_ about the faunus vs. humans. I was a businesswoman, they were customers. Capitalism is blind and all that. "Because if they wanted us dead, they wouldn't have gone through the effort to strip us and tie us up. They'd have gunned us down on the spot. Did they say why they wanted you?" "No! They just took me from my home, that red haired one beat me with a paddle until I stopped talking… I won't even _tell_ you what the tiger did to me." she said, a shiver running up her spine. I wasn't surprised, Sienna Khan was _nothing_ if not aggressive. And if this woman was as racist at work as she was now? Oh Sienna would've had _plenty_ of anger to work out.

"What about you?" "They want to talk business. They stripped me because they were afraid I had a weapon on me." I explained, moving around my legs behind my back, using my hands to work with the ropes. Glynda sat in silence, watching me move around until I dropped the ropes, my legs freed. The handcuffs though? Without a bobby pin or a key of some kind, there wasn't a _chance_ was getting out of them. Not that it mattered, they wouldn't hurt a hair on my head if they knew what was good for them. "You're loose? Perfect! Quick! Get me out and I can he-MMPH!" "What did I say?" I said, staring her down as I shoved my right foot in her mouth. For good measure I kicked her ass with the other one, causing her to let out a grunt of displeasure. "Since you're so inept at this, let me be clear. Shut the fuck up, or I'll garrote you with this handcuff chain, understand?" I said, moving around and showing her the cuffs.

She nodded fiercely as I moved my foot, the woman coughing to try and get the taste out. I just moved back, trying to settle into a comfortable position until we reached our destination, wherever that may have been. Eventually, with Glynda finally deciding to be quiet, I managed to lull myself into a state of mind. Not quite awake, not quite asleep. Later I wouldn't remember a thing, just the drive itself, the vibrations of the car lulling me there. They were smart too, the tinted windows and high back walls, making me unable to even see where the sun was. There was no way to tell where we were going, no way for me to track them. When I felt the car stop, I had _no clue_ where we were at, not that it really mattered. When Sienna opened the back, the only thing I could see were the other cars. She smirked,

"Summer Rose. We have a _lot_ to talk about."

…

"Commissioner Ironwood?"

I said, raising an eyebrow as I saw the man walking past me. He had the same graying hair, bags under his eyes and five o'clock shadow as usual. Recent events must've been taking a toll on him. He was clad in a white suit, his pistol stowed in his jacket and two police deputy's accompanying him. He didn't acknowledge me, brushing past as he hurriedly walked towards the entrance to the building. I raised an eyebrow, a few red flags going up as I walked in the room, looking towards Pyrrha. I saw her left eye look towards, me, her mouth still frowning as I saw tears slipping from it. I walked over, pulling up a chair next to her as I tried to ignore the amount of bandages on her other side. She looked up at the ceiling, and she started talking to me. She sounded just the same, despite what had happened. "I've been in the force since I was fifteen Jaune, did you know that? It was five years just last month." "You hardly even look seventeen honestly." I said, giving her a brief smile.

She didn't seem to appreciate the attempt at lightening the mood, only glaring at me for a second before she looked back up, more tears falling. "Ironwood walked in. Didn't give me a card. No 'get well soon'. Nothing. He put that letter," she pointed half-heartedly to a letter on the nightstand, "and told me: 'Miss Nikos. I must inform you that you are official relieved of duty by reason of being unfit to work.'... then he _left_. He _left_ Jaune… they left me…" she said, tears falling from her eye as she sobbed, looking up at the ceiling. She reached over, my eyes widening as I saw her take a nearby vase of flowers, one with the familiar logo of the VCPD on it, and threw it at the wall with a loud CRASH! Water and flowers falling to the floor.

"FIVE DAMN YEARS! FIVE YEARS AND THE BEST THEY CAN DO! THE BEST THEY CAN DO IS _FIRE ME_!?" she shouted, grunting in pain as she gestured. I held out my hand, making her lay back down. She was in _no_ condition to be moving around like that. She reached up, pulling my hand over her cheek as she nearly nuzzled into it, sobbing into it as every wall of strength I'd ever seen her put up came tumbling down. I saw for the first time what Pyrrha really was. A girl. A scared, human girl that had the pressure of the world on her shoulders. And all that pressure had finally caused her to shatter. So I stood there, using my other hand to try and comfort her as I tried to help channel the floodwaters, give her someplace to relieve herself. Eventually those sobs turned into sniffles, and those sniffles turned into dead silence.

I pulled away, moving my chair closer as I saw her look up at the ceiling. "Ozpin showed up… said he was sorry… he didn't have the heart to tell me why… why he was so sorry for me." she said, her eyes blank now, the sadness buried within with the force of habit. The habit of hiding away. I didn't bother to comfort her with "It's okay" or "It'll get better". I didn't sugarcoat things… and right now, I _knew_ Pyrrha was hurt. I knew it hurt her to even speak, but it hurt her _so_ much more to stay silent. She looked up, holding up her hand and gently flexing her finger down. I leaned in, thinking she was going to whisper. Only instead… I felt her peck me on the cheek. I felt my face flush slightly as I leaned back, rubbing my cheek.

She smiled, "I wish I'd met you six months ago… before you ever had Blake. I wish I'd met you earlier even, wish we'd grown up together. I wish I'd had someone like you in my life before all this… before I joined the force… before I was kicked out. You're… you're too good for this world Jaune… you really are." "No… you're too good for it. I'm exactly where I need to be. Someone has to make it good enough for people like you right?" I said, smiling down at her as she reached over, taking my hand. She chuckled slightly, cringing a bit. I had no doubt the action caused her a lot of pain. Her eye finally focused on me again, and I saw for the first time a sort of warmth in her gaze, something I hadn't seen before. "I've never had a real friend before… I wish I'd had one like you when I was little." "Well… you aren't exactly little anymore but… if you want a friend like me… you've got one." I said, patting her hand.

She sighed, lightly kissing my hand. "Thanks Jaune… but do me a favor. Don't tell Blake I kissed you?" "I won't… this world is bad sometimes but I uh, rather like _living_ in it." I said, getting a slight chuckle out of the injured girl before she sighed, leaning into her pillow slightly as she shut her eye. "When I'm cleared out of here… you mind helping me figure things out? What comes next?" "Pyrrha… you don't even have to ask." I said, smiling at her as I stood. I could tell she was getting tired, even before she said it a second later. I turned, walking out the door as I saw her sleeping, one of the nurses walking past me. I turned out into the hallway, smiling as I saw the two familiar figures running towards me.

I leaned down, embracing the rabbit faunus and black haired girl I knew to be Neo in the disguise Pyrrha made for her. I spun them around, lightly kissing Ton-Ton's cheek before I did the same to Neo's forehead. "Let me go! Where's my daughter!?" I heard the familiar voice say. I looked up, my eyes widening as I saw a tall man shove Velvet into the nearby wall, pulling her hands behind her back as I saw him going for his handcuffs. "HEY! What's going on!?" I shouted, walking towards the officer, glaring at him. He looked over, raising an eyebrow towards me. "This is a human only facility, her kind aren't welcome here without due cause." "She's visiting _me_ , that's considered due cause under act 7 of the Vale Municipal Structure Guidelines." I said, giving a slight glare to the man. Being a detective, I had to know the law I was sometimes required to enforce/waive.

The man glared at me, "Are you back-talking an officer?" "It's of no relevance to the issue, nor is it a crime to state the facts. You're arresting an innocent woman officer… Winchester, is it? So unless you plan to have a Class 3 action suit against you for wrongful arrest, or a Class _6_ action suit for assaulting an innocent, or even a Class _7_ suit against you for domestic violence, I suggest you let her go." I said. The man's face paled slightly as he stepped back, walking away from Velvet as I glared at him, motioning him away from Velvet as I reached over, gently taking her wrists. "Are you okay?" I asked once the man was gone. Velvet looked over at me, her eyes still wide and spooked, her heart no doubt still pounding. She nodded her head regardless, smiling slightly as I sensed some of the tension leaving her shoulders. "Yeah… thanks to you." "Listen, while you're in here -and this goes for you two too-" I said, pointing at Neo and Ton-Ton "Don't get too far away from me, otherwise they'll try and slap you with trespassing charges. Just say you're visiting Jaune Arc if they try." I explained.

Velvet pulled me aside, holding up her hand as if to shield Ton-Ton and Neo from her words. "They… they won't _really_ arrest little Ton-Ton will they? I mean… she's _child_." "They will, they'll either charge her with trespassing as a juvenile and send her to a detention center, or they'll charge you with child neglect and try to get you locked up in a penitentiary, send her to an orphanage where no one will bother looking after her just because she's a faunus." I said, Velvet's eyes getting wider and wider as I spoke. It may not have even been the _words_ , but rather just how matter-of-factly I said them. Velvet walked over, wrapping her arms around her daughter and hoisting her up, letting the little girl rest on one arm as she placed the other on her back. "How do you know so much about this Jaune?" "Discrimination pays your salary Velvet." I said, sighing slightly as I leaned back against the wall. Wished I could smoke right now, but we're still in a hospital. "Most of the police don't help the faunus, so people like us do. We tell ourselves we're doing it for their good but really… it's not that. Not _only_ that."

"We're just maggots, feeding off their sores."


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter twenty-five: So it begins…

"Well?"

I asked, looking blankly at Sienna as I slowly sat up, pulling myself to a standing position in front of her. She smirked, looking over towards Glynda. "I see you've met the racist police officer. Care to make me an offer?" "Gag her again first, we talk about her future later. The now is my concern." I said. Sienna nodded towards one of her goons, who went over and gagged the struggling Glynda, not-so-subtly groping her breasts before he shut the trunk, walking back towards his post. I didn't care, Sienna didn't care, nobody did except the other goons. They mostly only cared because they couldn't do it themselves. "I hear you got rid of the _one_ police captain that wasn't a speciest." "Sorry to disappoint, but you've got the wrong woman." I explained, sitting back against the truck's back bumper as I saw Sienna's ears perk up slightly.

"What?" "It's true I had _planned_ to hire The Fallen to kill Pyrrha Nikos, but I'd yet to get around to doing it before the incident. Someone else got to her first it seemed." I explained, causing the faunus girl's fists to tremble in silent rage. She _hated_ being told she was wrong, and I was about the only woman in the world willing to do that. "You're not lying, are you." "Sorry Sienna, but no, I'm not." I said. She'd seen me before, known me well enough that she could tell if I was lying. Of course, I never _actually_ lied to her, just told her falsehoods knowingly while making up an obvious tell (lightly petting my hair) so that she would always _think_ she knew when I was lying. Then again… considering my hands were bound, that tell didn't really _help_ here. Thankfully I didn't need to lie about this.

She sighed, "Well… other than that, about the weapons shipment?" "Destroyed. A gang called the Sugar Sloths destroyed it before it could be recovered. The ship was sunk to the bottom of the harbor, any munitions it carried were detonated or stolen." I said. I could understand why she was pissed, why she punched the side of the van I was next to. After all, that shipment was _meant_ to go to the white fang. They were some of my best customers… an unfortunate loss to say the least. Not even _mentioning_ the amount of money it would cost to bribe _another_ ship crew after this. "Who? Who the hell blew up _that_ many munitions." "A gang that will soon no longer exist. Led by the ex-Khan Nora Valkyrie." I said. I'd known about her little gang for a long time, but to think they'd ever be such a headache… unbelievable.

She sighed, "Nothing else for it I guess… now, about the whore." "Her body puts her around eighty-thousand. She's a well known figure among my clientele, so make that 120 thousand. Though, she's well known in public, meaning we need to fake her death. That sets her down to seventy-five thousand. That fine with you?" "Hmm… deal, but fatten her up. I know a guy who'll pay big for her, but she'll need to be twenty pounds heavier before he'll even _think_ about buying. Consider the seventy-five a finders fee." she said. I nodded, turning around and lightly holding up my hands. She shook them before uncuffing me, allowing me to pull my hands in front of me. I yelped as I felt her slap my rear, causing me to jump away from her. She smirked when I turned around, her eyes trailing down a bit. "I know a guy who'd pay a couple million to have you for a night." "Tell him if I ever find out his name I'll kill him and his entire family." I said. She nodded, motioning to the car. I got back in, looking over at Glynda, down towards her rear.

"That ass better make me a _lotta_ money for all this trouble."

…

"Mercury."

I said, walking into the hospital room. He looked over, his knee covered in bandages, but not cast. He looked over at me for a second before he turned away, looking at the wall. "How's your knee?" "Doc said it wasn't broken, but it's never gonna heal completely. Said it'll hurt to walk for the rest of my life." he said, frowning down towards his leg, gently rubbing it. I traced his other hand back, frowning slightly when I saw that it was cuffed to the bed. They knew who he was, or at least _Ozpin_ knew who he was. "I won't go to jail… mind smothering me with the pillow? It won't take long, you can leave before anyone knows you were here." "You're right, you won't go to jail… but I'm not killing you." I explained. He raised an eyebrow at me, looking at me like I was a crazy person.

"Whatever do you mean, Mr. Arc?" "Perfect timing as always Chief. Mind talking in the hall?" I said, turning around and smiling at the older man. He nodded, giving me a knowing smile before he turned around, opening the door and letting me go through. He shut the door behind him, turning and smiling at me. "You want to do the same thing you did to Ren?" "He saved my life Ozpin, the least I can do is return the favor." I said, my eyes determined against the older man's seemingly all-knowing gaze. Of course, I didn't have to focus too hard. It was Ozpin, he knew what I wanted, he knew I'd do what I had to to get it. "Very well… we have little actual evidence that he's the _real_ Mercury Black, but if you can convince him to give up details about The Fallen empire in Mistral, I'm willing to look the other way. Erase all the evidence, let him go in a sense. Think you can do that detective?" "He won't have to."

We both turned, seeing Mercury open the door, leaning on the frame to support his bum leg. He smiled, "I've only got one condition, and I'll give you the names of every mercenary, killer, and terrorist that ever associated with Cinder, and their locations." "What's your condition?" Ozpin asked, his small smile giving away much more than Mercury seemed to realize. This would be a _huge_ blow to the Mistral crime families, and _especially_ so to the Arc clan, who relied on the Fallen and Mercury so much. "That Emerald Sustrai gets to walk free too. You'd know her better as the queen of thieves." "Done." Ozpin said, still smiling. His _last_ concern when he was dealing with murderers was a thief that rarely really stole much of _anything_ in recent years. Sure six years ago she was bad but, now? Now she was really just an old urban legend. Everyone thought she was dead anyway, why not let her go?

Mercury smiled, "Alright… I'll start writing their names down. Thank you… really, I mean it." he said, turning and hobbling back towards the bed, where the handcuffs lay on the bar, unlocked with a bobby-pin still inside them. Ozpin turned to me, "You better make sure he becomes a model citizen." "How about I aim to make him like me and Ren first, _then_ worry about the model citizen part." I said, arousing a chuckle out of the older man. He nodded a few times, holding out his hand. I shook it, smiling up at him for a second as I saw a spark in his eyes. A spark of pity, of regret… of fear. I knew what he wanted to talk about before I even said it. "I'm getting too old for this Mr. Arc… I do believe it's about time I retire." "If you go every good thing about this city goes with you." I said, staring him down.

He nodded, smiling slightly, "I know… that's why I have a proposition for you, Mr. Arc." "Wait, me?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. That was… nothing like I'd expected. What could he _possibly_ be talking about? Unless… no, no that couldn't be it, could it? I mean, she _just_ lost her job, there's no way… there's no way. "I want you to become the police captain of the VCPD." there is a way… there is a way, and it's the one he's using right now. I looked at him… well, shocked would be an _understatement_. To think he'd be offering it to me of all people… "You… you can't be serious." "You're damn right he can't be!" I heard a voice shout to my left. I turned, feeling myself pushed aside by the man in the white coat, one that glared down at me before looking at Ozpin.

"Chief Ozpin you must be _in-sane_! Allowing an inexperienced _child_ into the police force!?" "He's solved more crimes than your entire department put together. He's more than experienced." Ozpin said, giving a slight smirk as Ironwood's face went red with rage. I couldn't help but join him in that, it was so refreshing to see the seemingly perfect Ironwood get called out on something he did wrong. Nice change of pace. He took a breath, "How is he qualified? Regulations state that-" "A qualified person must be placed into office unless in the case of an emergency or temporary vacancy. Way I see it, Pyrrha isn't out forever. Just until she recovers." I said, glaring towards Ironwood as I recited the very code he was going to twist to his own purposes. He glared at me, looking towards Ozpin as the old man nodded. "Mr. Arc has demonstrated bravery, intellect, integrity, and courage in his work many times. To say he is _just_ qualified would be an insult to his skill." he said.

Ironwood glared at him, then at me, "Very well Chief. I… suppose he'll be the new captain." "Good… if that's all settled, I'd like to start heading home. It's been a hard day for us all. Especially the youngers." he said, his eyes shining with sympathy towards me and -though he wasn't looking in her direction- Pyrrha. I could see the sorrow he felt that he'd had to lay her off the same way Ironwood had. The moment I saw Ozpin walk around the corner, I reached up and gripped my gun as Ironwood did what I predicted him to do from the start: slam me into a wall. "You really think you can come in here and ruin all I've worked for!? I had twenty more capable officers that could take that idiot Nikos's role and he chooses _you_!? Some third-rate private eye with a soft spot for animals!?" "Don't." I said, glaring up at him as I felt my own rage boiling. He raised an eyebrow as I pushed back, causing him to stagger away from me.

"Don't you _ever_ , call them that. They are faunus. They're living, beautiful, proud, more than you'll _ever_ be; _Commissioner_ Ironwood." I said, still glaring as I insulted him on the one thing I knew would hurt. The fact that despite his influence, despite his connections, he was still a commissioner, and he couldn't be chief. No matter how hard he tried Ozpin would never give it to him. All because he hated faunus. He glared at me, reaching into his jacket. "Go ahead. I'll kill you before you can draw your gun." I said, glaring at him as I drew my own, aiming it right at his heart. He froze, slowly putting the gun away, letting his hands drop to his sides as I did the same, holstering my gun as well. "Don't mess with my plans Arc. Nothing good happens to those that do." he said threateningly as he turned around, walking out towards the door. I looked over, seeing Velvet, Ton-Ton and Neo dashing towards me, Blake among them.

"What was that about? I saw you meeting with Ironwood and Ozpin." Blake asked, raising an eyebrow, concern plain on her face. I reached over, pulling the bow from my shoulder and tying it back on her head, causing her to blush as she gazed up at me. I leaned over, pecking her forehead before I smiled, "Well… Pyrrha's out of commission for awhile so… he asked me to be acting VCPD captain." "REALLY!?" all of them shouted at once. Velvet's eyes were wide with shock and -if I guessed right- fear. Blake's were just shock, while Ton-Ton and Neo looked _ecstatic_ , likely just because I'd said it with a smile. I crouched down, picking up the two young girls in my arms before I started walking towards the exit, smiling back at the two women. "We'll talk later, it's been a long day." I said, giving them a tired smile as I turned around, walking towards the exit.

"Jaune!"

I turned, raising an eyebrow as I unconsciously reached towards my gun, nearly bringing little Ton-Ton with me, as I saw the familiar silver eyed girl running towards me. She skidded to a halt in front of me, panting slightly before she gave me that bright, innocent smile of hers. One I knew hid behind it the most infamous killer in Vale, one of the most dangerous in Remnant. I forced myself to smile at her, unconsciously tightening my grip on Neo and Ton-Ton. She looked down, her eyes lighting up even more when she saw Ton-Ton. "Awww!~ Who's this little bun-bun?~" she asked, leaning in towards Ton-Ton. Ton-Ton -who normally loved getting attention for how cute she was- seemed a bit reserved, as if confused about something. I saw her little nose twitching slightly as she sniffed the air. "Are you a flower?" she asked, wide and innocent eyes gazing up at Ruby.

Ruby covered her mouth with her hands for a second, a high squeal slipping out as she nearly jumped at her, jerking Ton-Ton from my grasp. "OH MY GOSH YOU'RE THE CUTEST THING I'VE EVER SEEN!" she shouted, swinging Ton-Ton around, pressing her flush against her. Ton-Ton looked up, smiling slightly at Ruby as the taller girl suddenly froze, handing Ton-Ton back to me. She scratched the back of her head, shutting her eyes and smiling sheepishly, "Eheheh… sorry about that." "Uhh… it's, okay?" I said, trying to process what had just happened. I mean, it wasn't as strange as when _Nora_ had done precisely the same thing to Neo -given Nora was much less childish and didn't hide her madness- but it was still strange. The bloody rose was a killer… did she have a soft spot for kids or something?

"You… don't care that she's a faunus?" Velvet asked, walking over and casually taking her daughter from my arms. Ruby looked at Velvet, not bothering to hide her confusion. Velvet could've grown a second head and Ruby wouldn't have looked more shocked. "Why would I? Cute is cute. Those little bunny ears just make her look like a widdle fluff-puff!" she said, reaching over and petting Ton-Ton's ears. Ton-Ton only smiled, enjoying the sense of being pet like she normally did. Velvet stepped back, causing Ruby to pout at her. "Aww… sorry Mrs. Jaune's Secretary. I… wait, why did I come here again?" she looked up, her face sporting a confused expression as she started tapping her chin, tilting her head a bit. Then she snapped, "Oh yeah! I came to give you this!" she said, reaching into her signature denim jacket and pulling out an envelope.

She handed it to me as I read the front of it. " _Jaune Arc… huh, nothing else written._ " I thought as I set the strangely blank envelope in my trench coat. Ruby smiled at me, holding her hands in front of her stomach like she usually did. "Mommy felt really bad about you and Ms. Pyrrha not being able to come to the party and -as luck would have it- it was a really busy day so most people didn't show up anyway. So, we're inviting you to a make-up party! You uh, may need a new date though." she said, giving me a strangely sympathetic smile. Coming from a girl who killed people like it was nothing, I was surprised she _had_ any sympathy. I looked over at Blake, the two of us sharing a knowing look. "I uh, don't think that'll be a problem." I said, giving Ruby a slight smile, gritting my teeth as I did so.

Ruby smiled right back, that same bright, innocent smile she'd given me when we met. Once I'd thought it endearing… now it made me sick to my stomach. She walked over, lightly pecking me on the cheek. "Bye Jaune!" she leaned down, doing the same thing to Ton-Ton. "Bye widdle fluff-puff!" she said, waving at us before she turned around, walking away and humming a happy little tune to herself. Though, before she left, she stopped mid hum, swiveling around and walking over to Blake. Blake froze, looking towards Ruby. Ruby just leaned over, pecking her lips. "Bye Blake!" she said, turning back and skipping away as if nothing had just happened. I slowly turned to Blake, raising an eyebrow. What had just… what was that? Blake met my eyes, looking over towards Ruby with a smile, a few tears gathering in her eyes before she turned back to me.

"She's still in there… my Ruby is still in there." "Woah woah woah, hold on. _Your_ Ruby? What do you mean _your_ Ruby? You've never called her _your_ Ruby." I asked, feeling my confusion growing and -more than likely- spreading across my face as I walked over to Blake. Something felt _so_ wrong about this… what was she not telling me. Blake sighed, tapping on the red patch on her jacket. "Ruby." she tapped the white, "Weiss.", finally, she tapped the yellow. "Yang. We all have a jacket. We all have patches for everyone. Everyone, except ourselves." she said, keeping that knowing smile on her face. The smile that told me she knew something. Something I didn't. She knew more about this than she was letting on, I could tell by looking at her.

Luckily, she didn't seem too hesitant to disclose what she knew. "First it was Yang and Ruby. Then Ruby and Weiss, with Yang and me on the sidelines. Then it was all of us… together. I thought when Ruby… when the Bloody Rose shot Yang, it was over. It is… sort of. But I was wrong. I thought Ruby was gone too… she isn't. The Ruby _I_ knew is still in there. She's still kicking and screaming inside her head, trying to get out. That old Ruby, the kind, innocent little girl… she's in there. She's in that psychopath and she wants _out_. I can _feel_ it." she said, still smiling as she walked over, wrapping her arms around me. She looked up at me, frowning slightly as her ears flattened. I knew in that moment that she could ask for the moon… and I'd find some way to give it to her. I knew I could never say no to that face. "We have to get her out… we have to save her from her mother, we have to save her from _herself_. I can't watch Ruby fade away like this…" she said, her eyes pleading with me. I didn't even feel myself speaking as the words slipped from my lips, right before they met Blake's.

"Don't worry… we'll get her back."

…

" _So… I was right._ "

I thought with a frown as I walked down the street, heading back towards my home. I didn't want to believe it, I _still_ didn't want to believe it. Yet, I knew it was true. " _Once more… my stayed hand is what harms so many… forgive me Ms. Ni… Pyrrha. I'm so sorry…_ " I thought as I tapped my cane against the ground, striking uneven notes against the asphalt as I felt that familiar guilt bubbling up in my stomach. I needed a drink when I got home. I turned down the nearby alley, the same way I'd always gone. I stopped about halfway through, turning my head slightly as I heard the loud hitting of footsteps on the ground from behind me. I felt my eyes widen when I saw the culprits: Two men in trench coats with eyes zeroed in on a target. That target?

Me.

I reached for my own gun, but I could tell already I wouldn't make it. They drew their guns, both of them firing as I felt sharp pains strike my body, the gun slipping from my hands as they fired, one of them running over and pushing me against the wall. I felt my body shot full of bullets as they kept shooting, emptying their clips into me before they ran off, leaving me to slowly fall to the ground. I moved my head -the jerky motions of a dying animal- to look down at my hands. I felt myself fall over to the side, my right hand gripping my cane as I tried to hold on. I gritted my teeth, grunting as I started moving, dragging myself forward. I turned, facing the sky as I felt it. The first little, drops of rain. They started falling slow, landing against my face as I leaned back, my muscles relaxing against my will. I was just… so tired… so… tired…

"Mister!? Oh my god! Are you…" I heard a voice shout. I moved my eyes, watching as a young man ran towards me, crouching on the ground and -attempting- to dress the wounds. I knew it was futile, a wasted effort. I was going to die, they'd shot me right through the liver and stomach, I could see the bullet holes. But this young man… this tan skinned, amber eyed young man… he was trying to save me. He didn't know who I was… he was trying to save me. "Chi…ld…." "Nono! Don't talk! HELP! SOMEONE! GET A DOCTOR!" the boy shouted. I gritted my teeth as I reached up, grabbing his hand. I pulled him down slightly, gently wrapping his hand around my cane. "Take… this…" "W-Why? Sir? Sir why? Sir please, answer me! Oh god there's blood everywhere! Just hold on a little longer!" the boy said, redoubling his efforts in calling for help.

I started coughing as I looked up, feeling my conscious ebbing away. I had to tell him, I _had_ to tell someone. It couldn't die with me, I wouldn't _let it_ die with me. "My… cane… please… get it to-" I was interrupted by a coughing fit, falling back against the ground. The young man leaned down, eyes sparkling slightly in the light as I saw it. That same spark I'd had in my youth. That same spark I'd seen in Pyrrha Nikos's eyes, and in Jaune's. "You need me to get it to someone? Who? I'll get it to them, I promise! Just tell me who!?" he said, more and more panicked as I felt myself slipping away. I could hear other people moving in as I spoke, feeling my eyes slipping shut. I whispered one last thing to him, the only thing left. "Jaune…" I fell back, the last of my breath leaving me as I looked up at the sky, yet not seeing. It felt like I was falling, all the pain that I felt becoming less and less meaningful the further I fell.

I could only hope that young man had understood.

…

" _Jaune… who's Jaune?_ "

I couldn't help but think as I reached over, closing the dead man's eyes before I leaned over, looking down at his chest. " _Ozpin… looks like a police officer uniform. Maybe I should go ask them…_ " I thought as I stood, walking back out the way I came, clutching the man's cane in both hands. I looked around, suddenly worried that whatever it was about this cane had made that man a target. And I'd just accepted the next hit. So, I hid the cane as well as I could. Taking the shortcuts I knew towards the police station. I dashed down an alley, my eyes widening as I saw a man dart out in front of me. I skidded to a halt, hiding the cane behind my back. "Hey there kiddo… you got something of mine. Just hand it over, make this easy on yourself." he said, holding out his hand.

I started walking towards him, no longer caring about hiding the cane. " _Just give it to him Oscar… it's not your problem…_ " I thought as I walked towards the man, slowly holding up Ozpin's cane. I was about to drop it when I hesitated, holding back slightly. The man raised an eyebrow at me, reaching into his jacket. " _I promised him… I promised I'd get this cane to Jaune… whoever that is._ " I thought as I stepped back, gripping the handle a bit tighter. The man glared at me, as if he could hear my inner monologue. He pulled out a pistol, about to point it at me. I didn't even think as I spun the cane, slamming the side of it across his cheek before I dashed past him, out into the street as I started running towards the police station. Maybe 'Jaune' was some kind of recruit? Or maybe he was his son? A friend? Whatever it was, I could find it there.

I heard the sound of a gunshot, a bullet whizzing past my ear as I ducked into a nearby alley, crouching behind a trashcan. I held my breath, pulling a nearby trash bag in front of me to try and hide my body as much as I could. I watched the man dash past me, my heart skipping a beat as he stopped in the center of the alley. I didn't wait as I stepped over the trashcan, booking it out of the alley.

 **THUMP!**

"AH! Sorry!" I said, stepping back away from the person I knocked down. It was a young woman, a few years older than I was. She was clad in a brown sweater and black pants, her eyes brown and sparkling with nervousness. Her most noticeable feature though? That _had_ to go to the two long rabbit ears on her head. A faunus. I looked up, paling slightly as I saw a taller man and woman walk over to her, helping her up. The man was clad in a trench-coat and fedora, the bulge near his chest telling me he likely had a gun. I didn't get time to look at the woman as I heard that familiar voice. "You little brat! Give me that damn cane!" I heard a voice shout as I turned around, watching as the man aimed his gun right at me. I was about to run again when the man from before pushed me down, drawing his own gun.

 **BANG! BANG!**

In two shots, the other man was down, lying dead in the alley. I looked up, seeing the blond man offering me a hand. "Thanks mister." "Don't mention it. Why was he after you?" he asked, his eyes trailing down, as if examining me for any possible reason before I told him. His eyes lingered on the cane I held for a few moments longer before meeting my own eyes again. "He wanted this," I held up the cane, "but I wouldn't give it to him." "You seem a little young to be using a cane." the woman I didn't get time to look at said. She had eyes not dissimilar to my own -a bright amber- and long, flowing black hair. I gripped the cane as I stood, leaning against it slightly.

"It's not mine. A man got hit in the street and asked me to take this to Jaune… whoever that is." I said. All three of their eyes widened, but one other voice spoke as if it was no surprise at all. "Hit? Who hit them? Did it hurt?" I looked down, smiling slightly as I saw a little rabbit-faunus girl looking up at me, sporting an adorable confused expression as she scratched her chin. Another girl walked over -this one with black hair and green eyes- and started whispering in the other girl's ear. Meanwhile, the blond haired man walked over to me, his eyes suddenly bearing a new intensity to them. "The man that gave you that cane, did you recognize him?" "No… but, he was wearing a police officer's outfit. The name tag said 'Ozpin' on it. Does that sound familiar?" I asked.

The man nodded, reaching over and grabbing the edge of the cane. "Yeah… you might know him better as Chief Ozpin." "Wait, _that's_ who this belongs too!?" I asked, paling as I let go of the cane, letting the man grab it. I figured it was just some random cop, maybe a veteran but… the _chief_!? If _he_ got hit on the street that could only mean… " _Someone must've REALLY not wanted him to talk about something._ " I thought as the man turned over the cane, as if mulling over what to do with it. I walked over, lightly grabbing it. Blue eyes met amber as I spoke, "Uhh… do you know someone named 'Jaune'? Sir?" "You're looking at him. I'm Jaune Arc." he said, holding out a hand. I felt my eyes widen slightly as I shook it, looking down at his hand. It was rather calloused -about what I'd expect from someone who shot a gun all the time- and oddly cold. His eyes asked me a question, one I knew I was powerless not to answer. After all, he deserved to know.

"My name's Oscar… Oscar Pine."


	26. Chapter 26

Chapter twenty-six: Stage one: Preparation

"I'd like you to come with us."

"Umm… why?" the newly named Oscar asked, raising an eyebrow at me. He looked rather… strange, for a random person on the street. His eyes were similar to Blake's, a bright amber, while his skin was tanned in a way I seldom saw in Vale. He looked almost southern Mistralean. His hair was light-brown, cut into soft spikes down towards his eyes, patching over his forehead. He was dressed in a ratty white shirt with a simple pair of brown pants, some dark-green, clearly second-hand boots on his feet. "I'd like to ask you a few questions. How Ozpin died and all that. It's not safe to talk here, come to my office." I said, giving a slight smile towards him, slowly shifting my eyes around to make sure no one was listening in. Oscar looked down, his eyes shifting off to the right for a moment before he nodded, gesturing for me to lead the way.

As we started walking, I overheard Oscar and Velvet talking. "Sorry about running into you ma'am." "It's okay… you get used to it." she said. I looked back to see her ears droop slightly, Oscar's guilt no doubt getting even worse when he looked away. I turned back, looking straight ahead as I felt a pressure on my arm. I looked down and, sure enough, there was Blake, subtly tying her bow back over her ears. Our eyes met, "You sure taking him to the office is a good idea?" "No. In fact I'm almost sure it's a terrible idea, but we need information, and right now, he needs protection. That's what a caretaker does, right?" I asked, giving her a slight smile. She sighed, leaning further into my arm as her eyes trailed along the road, keeping an eye out for threats while putting on the guise of a tired lover. Ironic to call it a disguise when it's the truth.

Surprisingly, we were able to get to the office almost without a hitch, no police stopping us about Velvet and Ton-Ton, no one wondering what Oscar was doing with Ozpin's cane, no assassins. Nothing. I walked past the office, looping around the back entrance. No one questioned it, they knew what I was doing. "Everyone in." I said, holding the door as I motioned everyone to dash inside. Oscar came in last, amber eyes meeting blue ones. We didn't speak as I shut the door, locking it behind me as I turned ahead, walking through the door to the front of the office. Neo and Ton-Ton -naturally- immediately ran upstairs, no doubt to go play. Velvet opened the door to her own little office, sitting back in her chair as she prepared to open up. Blake and Oscar stayed with me, the three of us walking into my office. I sat behind my desk, "Have a seat." I gestured to the chair across from me. Oscar sat down, Blake leaning back against the door-frame, her hand casually toying with her jacket. I knew she could draw her gun and put him down in a split second if he tried anything.

"I'd like you to tell me everything you can about what happened. No matter how trivial. Understand?" "Yeah… I get it." he said, lightly twisting the head of the cane. No doubt he was nervous, basically being interrogated with a man he _knew_ was armed, a woman he likely _thought_ (rightly so) was armed guarding the only exit. He leaned back slightly, taking a breath before he started explaining. "Well, I was on one of my delivery routes when I heard gunshots. I waited a minute or two before I ran over, and I saw the man on the ground. I tried to keep pressure on his wounds, call for a doctor but, he died before anyone could get there. He was shot against a wall, a lot of bullet casings were on the ground. He told me to take his cane to Jaune -you- with his dying breath. This guy came up to me a minute later -the guy you shot- he pointed a gun at me and told me to give up the cane. I smacked him across the face before I booked it out of there." Oscar said, seemingly getting a bit more comfortable being where he was.

I nodded, holding out my hand. Oscar understood, handing me Ozpin's cane. I spun it around, ran a hand along it, looked for any kind of hidden message to it. No braille on the sides, no secret compartment I could find, not even a chip in the damn _paint_. It looked to be just a normal, walking cane. " _Wait, he was twisting the head piece… I wonder…_ " I thought as I moved up, trying to twist it. Slightly, but not enough. Twisting to the _left_ however, I felt it coming further undone. Though, trying to twist it after that resulted in nothing at all, just a loose piece. "Hmm… strange. What job do you do Oscar?" "Uh, I'm a courier in a way. Get packages from one place to another." he said, his eyes questioning me. Why would I be asking him what his job was? I nodded a few times, looking down and tilting the cane a bit more. "You like being a courier?" "Uhh… it's not _terrible_ no. Horrible pay and a lot of running but… well, I don't like being one, no." he said.

"Yeah… an immigrant right? Came here a few years back before the Quota Act?" "How'd you guess?" he said, giving me a faint smile. So he _was_ Mistralean. I had a feeling. Then again, with the way he looked, it wasn't that hard to figure out. He leaned back a bit, clasping his hands in his lap, dropping that faint smile. "Well… how do you feel about getting a new job?" "Depends what it is." he said. Despite his best efforts, his eyes still shone with that faint hope, the hope of getting out. Being better. I recognized it well, since I'd seen it in the eyes of my clients so many times, so many times they thought they were moving up… then they get pulled right back down. I reached into my pocket, lighting a cigar before I let out a puff of smoke into the air. I frowned at him, "Chief Ozpin was one of the few good people left in this city. I have a feeling I know who's responsible. I just need proof. Problem is, I can't get to it without being seen, he already knows me too well. Effectively Oscar, I'm asking you to become a spy." "Where?" was his only reply, his eyes still hopeful, if slightly fearful now.

"The Vale City Police Department."

"What!? There's not a _chance_! I couldn't pull that off!" "I'm not asking you to become an officer. That'd probably be the _worst_ thing you could become actually. I'm asking you to get a maintenance job -maybe even a janitorial one- and keep your eyes and ears open for anything we can use." I said. His eyes weren't filled with only wonder this time, but also a distinct and real sense of fear and shock. Blake had the same thing in hers, slowly walking behind him and looking at me. Her look asked if I was serious, _mine_ told her I was deadset. I looked at Oscar, "Look, I know it's risky, but what other choice is there? There are a very small number of uncorrupt officers, and most of them are already under suspicion by Ironwood as is. They'd be caught in seconds, you wouldn't be. The recruiter owes me a favor, so you'll get in no problem. You just need to keep your eyes and ears open, find out about anything you can." I said, letting out a puff of smoke to the side.

Oscar looked down, gripping his hands in his lap before gazing back up at me. "Why?" "I'm a detective Oscar, I want to solve this case. I want to bring the guy who orchestrated Ozpin's hit to justice. I want to stop this city from falling into the ground." I stood, glaring out my window as I saw the people walking about, no clue how many of them moles for the Rose family or the Police. I turned to Oscar, "Something's coming Oscar, something that will change this city forever. I want to stop it, but I can't do it alone. I _need_ someone on the inside, and right now you're the only one that isn't a suspect or under suspicion by Ironwood. No one's going to recognize a random Mistralean immigrant just looking for a job." I explained, leaning back in my chair.

"So… are you in?" I asked. He looked down, his eyes shifting across the table. I could _see_ the gears working overtime in the back of his head as he started thinking of things. The risk, the reward, the reasoning. All of it. He looked up, "What would I have to do?" I smiled at him, standing up before I walked over. I patted his shoulder, waiting a moment before he stood, revealing me to be almost a foot taller than he was. "Glad you're on board. All you have to do is go to recruitment office 1B tomorrow afternoon. A man with long, blonde hair will be the guy waiting. Ask for a job as a janitor, he'll give it to you. Then, just keep your eyes and ears open and report back to me what you can dig up… now, you can go." I said, motioning towards the door. He looked up at me for a second before he nodded, turning and walking out the door. That left just me and Blake.

I walked over, placing a hand on her shoulder, "I know… let me explain." she said, looking away from me. I turned, walking back and sitting in my chair as Blake sat across from me. She took a breath, "Ruby was… she was the best friend I ever had. When I ran from Adam, she was the first one to shelter me. When Nix died, she was the one that payed for the funeral. She kept us together… she kept me and Weiss from arguing, she kept all of us together. Without her… we drifted apart. Weiss went back to her family, Yang left hers, and I… I didn't do anything. I stayed right where I was because without Adam I didn't _have_ anywhere to go. I'd been staying at Junior's bar for almost a _month_ before you found me. I… I love her. Not the way I love you though, the way I love my mom, my dad… Nix… she was like that happy girl I hoped Nix would grow up to be… then her mother stole her away…" she gritted her teeth, gripping the arms of the chair.

I nodded a few times, motioning for her to go on. "We did everything together. We went shopping, clubbing… hell we even held up a bank together one time… for the record, that was Yang's idea." she said when she noticed my incredulous look. "Yang introduced me to Coco after me and Adam's falling out and… well, you know how Adam always wears that mask?" she asked. I nodded, raising an eyebrow. What did that have to do with anything? I figured it was just the standard white fang uniform, not something he'd… wait a second… if he _always_ wore that mask, did that mean… "She did something?"

"He's got a glass eye thanks to her."

I sat back, processing the information for a few moments. So… was she _always_ somewhat violent or, was that because of her mother? Either way, to think Adam and Ruby were worst enemies was… well, something else entirely. "So... he lost his eye because of you?" I asked, smiling when she giggled. She nodded a few times, leaning back in her chair as she sighed. "In a way… so, what now?" she asked, looking down towards my desk. I sat down, looking over Ozpin's cane again before I reached over, dialing the familiar number on my phone. "Velvet… yeah, it's okay… actually, I was calling to tell you to close up shop for the day… yes I'm aware we've been closed most of the last week… I'm dealing with a case… alright, take care of her… bye." I said, hanging up before I stood, patting my coat to make sure I still had my gun. Sure enough, it was still there. I loaded a fresh bullet into it before I lit a cigar, offering one to Blake. "What are we doing?"

"We're going to Ozpin's home. If there's any clues about this cane, they'll be there. Cigar?" I said, offering it to her again. She shook her head, standing up as I laid the cigar back in my pocket, letting out a puff towards the ceiling. I picked up my phone again, dialing Ren's house and -when that failed- Nora's. It rang three times before he picked up, "Hello… yeah, it's me… Ozpin's dead, and I'm looking for the killer… uh-huh… yeah… okay, I understand… bye. Good luck." I hung up, walking past Blake out the door. Granted, I'd kind of expected Ren's answer before I called… I mean, he _just_ got engaged, he and Nora had a lot of work to do. "Who was that?" Blake asked, catching up to me as I locked my office door behind her.

"Ren. He's out-" "So am I in?" I turned, smiling slightly as I saw May walk towards us, a pistol on her hip and a small smile on her face. She had a revolver -one rather similar to mine at that- and what looked to be a knife on her other hip. She was dressed in a pink skirt and a white shirt, something that matched a bit better with Neo's hair than hers, but I wasn't going to complain. "Sure. Don't know if we'll be getting into a firefight but, couldn't hurt to have some extra help." I said. May nodded a few times, the three of us walking out past Velvet as she headed upstairs, no doubt to get Ton-Ton and Neo from upstairs. Meanwhile I stepped out the front door, locking it behind us as the three of us started walking. "Any idea where Ozpin's house _is_?" May asked, sticking to the street side as Blake stuck to the building side of me.

"It's a ten minute walk west, an older mansion near the woods. He's invited me there to talk business before." I said, flicking my eyes around the area as we walked. Always looking out for any suspicious characters as I thudded Ozpin's cane against the ground. We were halfway there, fire minutes later when I noticed something suspicious. That something being two men walking towards us. Normally that wouldn't be so suspicious, given that it was Vale and there were often times people walking around. Even the guns in their coats wouldn't be all that surprising if it weren't for one thing. The look in their eyes. The look of killers, thugs, hitmen. I knew that look well.

After all, I'd had it for 14 years.

Time seemed to slow as they started running towards us. May seemed to sense it too, drawing her gun as I did the same. Their eyes widened as me and May fired, unloading our cylinders into the two men as they tried to draw their guns. I cracked open my cylinder, making sure to catch the shells so Ironwood couldn't link me as easily to the murder. May did the same, both of us loading in fresh bullets as the three of us -without speaking a word- started running. We ran for almost two minutes before I saw Ozpin's home in the distance, slowing us to a walk. "Anybody know who those guys were?" Blake asked when we were nearly at the gate leading into the estate.

"Hitmen if I had to guess. Hired to get Ozpin's cane and kill whoever was holding it." I said, keeping my eyes staring straight ahead as I dropped my cigar -which had long since burned down to a stub- and snuffed it out with Ozpin's cane. I looked ahead, "We're here." I said simply, walking up to the gate. It wasn't locked. There was a problem. Ozpin _always_ locked the gate when he left. That meant that someone had already been inside. Sure enough, when I pushed the gate open, I saw the familiar lock and chain laid off to the side, the chain snapped with a pair of bolt cutters if I had to guess. "Someone's been here already." May said, cocking her revolver as I did the same, Blake drawing her pistol. I shut the gate behind us, turning back and keeping my eyes on the house.

It was a fairly large place, green siding with large windows on both stories. A rather nice place if I had to say so. We go up to the door, finding that it too was broken into. We walked in, listening closely to see if there was anyone else in the house with us… silence. The only noise being the ticking of the nearby grandfather clock. I walked through the foyer, frowning as I saw what looked to be a mass of papers burning in the fireplace. "Oh no, they beat us-" "Not yet they haven't. If I know Ozpin, he wouldn't make his secrets as easy to find as a piece of paper." I interrupted Blake, the three of us walking into the kitchen. We holstered our weapons, confident that no one was inside the house but us. "May, search this floor. Blake, look upstairs. I'll check the basement." I said, the three of us splitting up to search. I walked out the back door, finding the cellar doors right next to them. I pulled them open -Ozpin never bothered locking them- and walked back down, reaching around to try and find a light-switch.

A few seconds of feeling along the cold stone walls, I found what I was looking for. I shut my eyes as the lights blinded me. When I opened them, I saw about what I expected. A large basement, a large shelf off to the side, a few bottles stacked on them in the traditional fashion of a wine cellar. "Hmm… what are you hiding Ozpin?" I muttered, pulling out and inspecting the bottles of wine. None of them opened a secret door or anything -if only it were that easy- and each of them seemed to be just an ordinary bottle of wine. I walked over to the side, looking in the furnace to see -sure enough- more papers as fuel. Looking inside, I noticed those papers seemed to be old police reports. Nothing really of interest that wasn't already burned. "No help here…" I said as I shut the door. I must've turned over every little thing in that basement… nothing. Not a single thing to help with the case or this cane.

I walked back into the main room, Blake coming down the stairs at the same time. "Anything?" she shook her head, shrugging as we walked into the kitchen. May was looking at the clock, her face disgruntled. I walked over, looking at it with her. I didn't see anything out of the ordinary, it just looked to be a normal… wait a second. "You see it too right?" "Yeah." I replied. The second hand wasn't moving normally. Rather, it was moving in what seemed to be a random order… that is, until I started seeing it repeat. "I think you're onto something May… hold on a second." I said as I looked at the cane, then the clock. Three seconds backward, two seconds forward, two seconds backward, one second forward, repeat. " _Worth a shot_." I thought, turning the head-joint three times counter-clockwise, then two clockwise, then two counter-clockwise, then once clockwise.

"Jackpot."

I said as I felt the head-joint come undone, revealing the inside of the cane. I walked over to the kitchen table, setting down the head-joint before spilling the cane's contents onto the table. Inside were two things: A note and a key. The note said only one thing: 'The clock is the lock'. I looked at the key, noticing it to be a rather large, like one you'd see in an older home. Or… in an older _clock_. I looked at the grandfather clock, opening the bottom of it before I started feeling around. Sure enough -in the base of the clock's cabinet- I felt a knob, with a keyhole right above it. I grabbed the key, turning it in the hole before I pulled up on the knob. I felt around inside, raising an eyebrow when -at first- I didn't _feel_ anything at all. It just felt like an empty cabinet. I felt a brief moment of panic: Had they gotten to it too?

Though, that panic proved to be for nothing when I felt the small, metal object in the otherwise wooden cabinet. I pulled it out of it's place, smiling when I saw it was another key. This one, though, I recognized. "Another key? Wonder what it goes to…" May said, leaning down and looking at it. The brass key had the familiar circular shape, with the number 517 on the front. On the back? A logo. The logo of the Vale Citizens bank. I turned it, showing it to May and Blake. "It's a safety deposit box key. Whatever he had of use is in that bank." I said, setting the key in my hat with my wallet. May stood, smiling at us as she sat back. She chuckled, "So… all we have to do is go to the bank and get whatever's in this box? Seems easy enou- wait I know that look… there's a catch isn't there?" she said, frowning when she noticed my glance at her.

I sighed, "Unfortunately. We'd either have to be in Ozpin's will or be a direct relative in order to open the box ourselves. The police -on the other hand- only need to show due cause to open it. Even if we knew someone in Ozpin's will, the police would have either confiscated or destroyed everything by the time we even get to look _in_ the box." I said, running a hand through my hair. Of course it was never easy… then again, Ozpin normally didn't make things _easy_ for me did he? Blake slumped over in her chair, frowning at us. "So that's it… we lost." she said. May sighed, doing exactly as Blake was doing. I shook my head, glaring at the wall as I screwed Ozpin's cane back together, tapping it against the floor. "We're not done… we have the key. We just need to get in the safety deposit box room to use it." I said, Blake and May's eyes widening. They knew what I was implying… granted, only Blake looked that phased by it. May's was more a look of excitement. "Are you saying you want to-" "That's _exactly_ what I'm saying. Ladies," I turned, smiling at them.

"We're robbing the Vale Citizens bank."

…

"Why are we here again?"

"We need help, and if anyone's as interested in this case as we are, it's her." I said, slowing to a stop in front of the old warehouse. I'd only been here a few times, and every one of them it was usually blindfolded and gagged. After arriving at the office, I'd figured it best just to bring May with me. Blake… well, it might not end well with her. I stopped outside, holding open the door for May as she stepped out, gripping her revolver. She could sense the tension in the air, the unease that came with this place. "Keep your hand to your side, but don't make it look like you've got a gun. Walk quickly, but don't run. And whatever you do, _don't_ make eye contact with _anyone_ , understand?" I asked. She nodded, following me towards the familiar door as I reached into my coat, casually dropping my hand down to my side, my gun in my hand. I'd had to borrow Ren's car for the drive (thankfully he was too preoccupied with his wife to care that much).

I stopped at the door, rapping on it with my right hand. They knew I shot right handed, they wouldn't be looking for a gun in my left. I saw the familiar slot near eye-level with me open, revealing two gray eyes staring at me. "Business or-" "Business Ilia. Strictly business." I interrupted, not wanting to go through a speech again. She opened the door, revealing the tan skinned, browned haired woman standing there. She was dressed in what looked to be a pink skirt and white blouse. Must be heading out. "Come on in, you know the rules Jaune." she said, stepping past me and May as the two of us walked in, Ilia shutting and locking the door behind us.

May leaned a bit closer, looking around at the gray walls nearby. "This is a terrible-" "I know, but it's the best bad idea I have." I interrupted, giving her a slight glare before I turned back ahead, seeing the larger door at the end of the hallway, past the boxes and pallets that were stacked up all over the place, a few grunts with the all too familiar masks moving them around. They paid me little mind, other than a few looking towards me once in awhile. An unwritten rule for them: If Ilia let's someone in, don't kill them unless they do something stupid. I stopped at the larger door, wrapping on it again. The door was pulled open to both sides, revealing the familiar office. It was rather nicely decorated -much in contrast with the abandoned warehouse look of the rest of the compound.

Seated in front of a wall with a large painting of the White Fang founder, behind a mahogany desk decorated with empty wine glasses and a familiar bottle, was Sienna Khan herself. She looked over at me, giving me a slight smirk. "Well well, Jaune goddamn Arc. Come to see me again?" she asked, standing up, revealing the long, black dress with the red bow in her hair. She wasn't dealing today, I could tell that much by the attire. I nodded, giving a faint smile as I walked over to her, pulling out the one chair in front of her desk and gesturing for May to sit down. She looked down at May, her eyes asking the question I knew was on her mind. "An associate of mine. There's a job-" "Hold on." Sienna interrupted, holding up a finger. She uncorked the nearby bottle. Mistralean wine of course. Always was her favorite.

She picked up three of the glasses, pouring wine into each of them. "Care for a drink?" she asked, showing her feline nature in her smirk. I nodded, grabbing the stem of the glass, May taking the hint and doing the same. She sipped her glass as I did the same, May following suit a second later. She sat on her desk, leaning back slightly as she brushed her hair from her faunus ears, smirking at me. "So, what're you here for this time?" she purred, moving around over the desk, sitting her feet just in front of me. I shook my head, giving her a slight smirk when I saw her pout. "Not that Sienna. I'm here about a job. Figured you might be interested. Lot of money in it." I explained, feeling a small spark of guilt at what I was doing. I was helping criminals, I knew that, but I was also doing it to put away _other_ criminals so, all things considered, I guess it balanced out.

She sighed, "Where?" "The Vale Citizens Bank. I've got a key to a safety deposit box that may have some valuable information in it. Information that can get Ironwood put away." I explained, reaching into my hat and holding out the key. Her eyes widened as she lept at it, me holding it high above my head as she pressed against me, reaching towards it. She backed up, wrapping her arms around me as she smiled. "Okay Mr. Arc. You've got my attention. There's just one hitch… given the other jobs I'm doing, I don't exactly have the manpower to rob a bank that size. Think you can get me some… recruits?" she asked, snaking an arm around my shoulders. I had to keep from backing away at her touch, guilt swarming me as I remembered the black haired cat faunus waiting for me at home.

"I know a few. Sugar sloths, they'll-" "Get them to do the job for low pay, and I'm in. I'll forgo the vengeance I have against little Nora for destroying my weapon shipment." she said, still smirking, her teeth seemingly more pointed now than they were just a moment before. I nodded a few times, giving her a brief smile as she pulled me aside, sitting down on her desk as she made me do the same. She trailed a hand up my coat. I knew what she was doing, looking for weapons. Of course, she wouldn't find it in my coat. Not now at least. "A little bare today aren't… oh you sneaky bastard~" she said as I held up my gun, aiming it towards her. She giggled, holding up her hands as I stood, keeping that small smile on my face as May shot up, quick drawing her gun as well.

"What now? You've got me at gunpoint, plan on-" "Leaving. Sienna. I'm leaving. A lot of work to do." I said, holstering my revolver as May did the same, keeping her eyes on the door behind us as I eyed Sienna. She pouted towards me, leaning back and yawning before she finished her wine glass, crawling back over her desk and sitting down in her chair. "What happened Jaune? Where did the time go?" she said, frowning towards me over the desk. I shook my head, frowning at her as I turned away, May keeping her eyes on Sienna now as I started walking towards the door. "It's done Sienna… this is business. Not personal, I don't-" "I know you don't… I know." she said. I heard her pouring another wine glass as I walked out the door, May walking out with me. We were outside before May finally spoke up, asking the question I knew she would.

"Okay… _what_ was that? Are you friends with her or something?"

"We were… once. I'd rather forget but… guess I can never really get away from her." I said, walking over to the car and holding the door for her. When we were both in, and I was driving away from the warehouse, May spoke again. "The way she was talking… the way you were talking… the gun, the wine…" her eyes widened, "You care about her." she said, her eyes boring into me. I just kept driving, my eyes blank as May stared, trying to coerce an answer out of me. When we got to the first stoplight, I finally obliged. "Did… I did. She was… well, she-" "You fucked her brains out?" May said, nearly causing me to swerve off the road with how blunt she was. I glared at her for a second before I stopped in front of the Rexford.

"No. We never slept together… well, at least not like _that_ we didn't. I mean-" "Have you or have you not seen her naked?" May interrupted, still glaring at me. I ran a hand over my head, glaring over at the shorter sniper. She was starting to get on my nerves with the constant interruptions. "She sleeps naked, a lot of people have. We went on a few dates almost a year ago, she didn't know who I was, and I didn't know who she was. Not really anyway. I saw her, thought she was cute, flirted with her and -surprisingly- she actually accepted, we went on a few dates, and we broke up when I refused to -as you put it- 'fuck her brains out'." I explained, getting out of the car and walking towards Nora's apartment. May followed, pressing the button to lock the car behind her. May opened her mouth to ask something else, but I placed a finger on her lips before she could speak. "I'm going to ask you to do _one_ thing, understand? _One_ thing." she nodded. I moved my finger, holding it up towards her.

"Never, _ever_ , tell Blake."


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter twenty-seven: Sugar Sloth Crash

"Nora?"

I looked around the strangely quiet apartment, May standing at my side, gun at the ready. She could sense it to… something was off. Normally they'd be at the door, ready to greet me (however hostile Nora would be) before discussing what I needed. This was different. Couple that with the fact that there were _no_ guards near the entrances? This had 'trap' written all over it. "Stay close, and keep quiet." I said, looking down at the sniper. She nodded, slowly cocking her gun as I took out my revolver, gazing about the room before I walked towards the back room. I crept up to her bedroom, holding revolver in one hand, other gently palming the doorknob. "May, get ready to shoot." I said, slowly twisting the unlocked knob. Second sign something was wrong, Nora _never_ left her bedroom door unlocked unless she was inside. Given the state of the apartment, that seemed _highly_ unlikely.

I pushed open the door slightly, eyes widening as I froze. I saw the slight line behind it, the familiar wire I'd just broken. There was only one reason that would be there. "Run… RUN!" I yelled, jerking May's arm as I dashed towards the open front door. We were maybe five feet out the door when-

 **BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM! BOOM!**

 _That_ happened. I felt myself leave the ground, my body tensing as I felt the jarring impact of the concrete, May skidding off to the side next to me. She sat up, gritting her teeth and rolling her shoulder back as I sat up, ignoring the fire in my side and looking instead to the fire before me. I saw a pillar of black smoke rising from the burning building, most of the upper floors caving in, the wind showering us with embers and drywall. "Holy shit… what just happened?" May asked, one eye gazing at me. I looked around, reaching out and grabbing her glass eye (suppressing the urge to vomit as I did so), handing it towards her. She looked down, reaching up to feel her eye socket with one hand before letting out a quiet yelp, yanking the glass orb from my hand and shoving it back in her eye.

After she was done putting her eye in, I turned back to the wreckage. "An emergency failsafe. Ren told me Nora had this place rigged to blow years ago… all she had to do was set the trap to do it. The one I just tripped." I said, grunting as I stood, a dull pain in my hip. May stood as well, staggering over and leaning against my shoulder, her eye gazing towards the remains of the building in disbelief. "Why'd she set the trap?" she asked. I didn't answer, but instead turned around, grabbing her shoulder and pulling her towards Ren's car. She didn't hesitate to walk with me (likely since she'd probably be struggling to do so on her own), but still gazed at me, that question burning in her eye. It wasn't until I'd started the car, pulling away from the Rexford and towards my office that I spoke. "Someone finally came knocking. She and Ren would've used the ladder to get to the roof before hoofing it to my office… well, that was Ren's _plan_ if this ever happened anyway." I said.

May gazed around the area, as if looking out for any threats. I didn't really blame her; I'd be doing the same if I didn't have to watch the road. Still didn't stop my eyes from gazing about the area, looking for any suspicious characters… scratch that, characters _somewhat_ more suspicious than usual. I kept driving through, taking the most obscure turns and shortcuts I could think of to keep anyone from following us before finally parking at a building almost a ten minute walk away from my office. I got out, opening the door for May before locking the doors, guiding her out onto the sidewalk. "What now? Without Nora we've got no men to-" I turned her around, pressing her again a nearby wall, laying a hand behind her neck. She looked up at me, her face tinging red as she squirmed. "This is gonna sound weird, but kiss me." I said, eyes darting over to the right in hopes she understood.

She had to turn her head almost completely to the right to see it, her eye widening when she did. She saw the two men walking towards us, both looking around absently. The reason I was suspicious? The rose tattoo on the taller ones arm. Not to mention the gun carelessly thrown into his jacket. They were hitmen, looking for someone. No clue who it was, but I didn't intend to find out if it was me. May nodded, leaning up and gently pressing her lips against mine as I did the same, shutting my left eye, trailing my other hand for my revolver. When I saw them walk past, sure enough I saw both looking away, walking a bit faster as I leaned over May's shorter stature, trying to make it look as real as I could.

When they turned the corner I pulled back, both me and May panting. "Mind explaining?" she asked, raising an eyebrow at me, her face putting her hair to shame. I nodded, turning away and quickly walking towards my office. "Public displays of affection make people uncomfortable, it was to keep them from recognizing us." I explained, turning the corner, seeing no sign of the two men. Maybe they _weren't_ after me but, I wasn't about to take any chances. We walked the rest of the way in silence, May still blushing by the time we finally managed to get to the office's front door. I opened the door, jumping back as I heard the familiar sound of a blade whistling through the air. Opening the door again, I saw what looked to be a kitchen knife stabbed into the wall, just a few inches right of the handle. I looked over, holding up my hands as I saw Ren holding another knife in one hand, his gun in the other.

He let out a sigh of relief, nearly slumping over the desk as Velvet peaked her head up from behind, her hands shakily holding a small pistol. As soon as she saw me her ears curled in slightly, laying the pistol on the desk and smiling at me. "What happened?" I asked, turning my eyes to Ren. He was silent… okay well, that was normal but, this seemed different from the Ren variant of silence. "A raid, a big one. Nora took a bullet through her arm and lost most of her crew. Five of them are upstairs resting… the rest are sleeping in the ruble." he said, his eyes angry, as well as something I'd never seen in Ren. Years of being my partner, and not a single time had I seen the emotion present in his eyes:

Fear.

I nodded, May walking with me as I laid a hand on his shoulder, giving him a sympathetic look. "We'll get them Ren… we'll get them." I said. He just nodded, sitting back on his stool, hidden behind the filing cabinet with his gun in his lap, a small, brown bottle of beer on the floor, accompanied by multiple empty ones. " _Can't say I blame him… I'd need a drink too after all that… well, maybe a cigar actually…_ " I thought, walking up the stairs behind the cowering Velvet, May in tow. When I opened the door, I didn't necessarily question the pressure around my back, against my chest. I just wrapped my arms around it, looking down to see the familiar black hair and bow. "Did they come for you?" she asked, sparkling Amber eyes gazing up through puffy red lenses.

I smiled, leaning down and pressing my lips against hers for a brief moment. "No… I don't think they did." I said. She looked up, letting out a sigh of relief before kissing me in earnest, only for her eyes to sport a confused gaze. She pulled back, looking me up and down for a second. I raised an eyebrow… what was… uh-oh. "You taste different…" she muttered, squinting up in suspicion as I fought down a blush. May -unfortunately- didn't have the luxury of my training in that regard, her face a brilliant red as she dashed past. Blake took one look back at her before glaring up at me, "You're hiding something." she said. I didn't bother to shake my head or deny it. If _I_ were in her shoes, it would be pretty obvious… maybe she didn't notice but, no point lying to her.

"I saw a few assassin's for the Rose family on the way back and I… well, I kissed May to make them look away from us. I wasn't going to risk it." I said, feeling a sudden, nervous stab in my stomach, as if I'd just admitted to murdering someone in court. Blake glared a moment longer before leaning up, kissing me again. This time it wasn't gentle though. No, this time, there was a sort of animal ferocity to her actions, an anger even. She pulled back, eyes glowing with a sort of primal urge to them. "I love you Blake, never forget that." I said, both to reassure her… and to hopefully convince her not to kill me. She looked up at me, leaning her head onto my chest before wrapping her arms around my neck, eyes gazing up through her hair. "Jaune…"

I held her as close as I could, meeting amber eyes with blue ones, "I mean it Blake, I really do." I said, smiling down at her. She turned, rubbing against my chest in a display of her faunus nature before she sighed. I barely thought about it as I reached up, untying her bow and rubbing behind her ears with one hand, the other still holding her to me. I heard the somewhat restrained purring before I leaned down, kissing her forehead. She looked up at me, a small smirk on her face, "I believe you. I just wanted you to pet me." she said, rubbing against me, purring unrestrained as I kept going. I couldn't help but laugh as she stopped, pulling away from me. She raised an eyebrow, her eyes asking a question I gladly answered: "If you want me to pet you, just ask next time okay? Nearly gave me a heart attack." I said, tapping against my chest, only to hear what sounded like paper crinkling.

I raised an eyebrow, reaching into my coat and pulling out a nearly blank envelope with the words Jaune Arc on it. "Oh… huh, guess I never opened it." I muttered, the memory of Ruby giving it to me earlier that day coming back. I turned, walking towards my office as I opened the letter, unfolding the piece of paper. " _Dear Jaune Arc, you are cordially invited to attend… blah blah blah, more flowery bullshit… this friday huh?_ " I thought, sitting down in my chair as I saw Blake walk over, leaning on my shoulder slightly as her eyes skimmed the letter. I handed it to her a moment later, having finished it myself, pulling out and lighting a cigar. "Another party… want May to go with you this time?" she asked, giving a small smirk towards me as I sighed, setting my hat and Blake's bow on the table and running a hand back through my hair.

"You're never gonna let me hear the end of this are you?" I asked, giving a small smile as she shook her head, setting the letter aside and leaning on my shoulder. I reached past Blake, grabbing the phone and dialing the all too familiar number. "Blake, whatever they say, don't say a word, okay?" I asked, looking over to see her nod. I took a breath, holding the phone up to my ear, where even without her advanced hearing Blake could probably tell what the woman on the other end was saying. "Who is this?" I heard a brash voice say on the other end. Ilia. I just let out a low whistle, the code the white fang insisted I use whenever I was calling from an unsecure line. I heard her turn and yell something, only for the sounds of breaking glass and moving furniture resound from the other end.

"Miss me so soon Jaune?" I heard the familiar voice of Sienna purr over the other end, Blake's eyes widening as I held up a hand to her mouth, motioning for her to be quiet. She nodded as I spoke to answer Sienna. "The Sugar Sloths are almost gone Sienna… we need _something_ from you for this to work." I said. She seemed to be mulling it over for a minute, a few discrete hums coming in from the other side, her barking orders to some people (assumingly telling them to clean the mess she'd made to answer the phone) before speaking again. "Can you do it this time next week? We'll be able to… 'distract' a few people that day." she said, speaking in code. Blake looked at me, her eyes begging the question I knew she'd ask: Are we seriously going to work with the group that had cast her out? Where one of her members killed her daughter?

"Yeah, we can." I said, eyes flashing towards Blake, letting her know Sienna wasn't the only one I was talking to. She gave me a slight glare before she leaned back, grabbing her bow and expertly undoing it, leaving a simple piece of ribbon. I heard Sienna giggling on the other line, "Alright honey, start at five okay?~" she said, a seductive purr to her voice. I saw Blake wrapping the ribbon around her hands, stretching it taut as if to keep herself from shouting at the feline on the other side. I nodded, "Can do. I'll call when it's done." I said. I didn't bother waiting for the no doubt innuendo-esque reply she was going to give. I didn't want to give Blake any _more_ reason to break the phone than she already had.

I looked over, seeing her pulling on her hands, her ribbon stretched between her fingers, her fists trembling as she gritted her teeth. "If that vipercat bitch comes onto you, I'm putting a bullet in her head." she said, glaring towards the phone. I stood, laying my hands on her shoulders in the most reassuring manner I could. I gave her my most reassuring smile, _juuuust_ to be on the safe side. "Blake, I can assure you 100%, that if she ever _seriously_ comes onto me, I'll be the one putting the bullet in her head. Don't waste your ammo." I said, pecking her lips again. I looked down at her hands, raising an eyebrow as I noticed she hadn't really moved her fingers. "Is that cat's cradle?" I asked, gesturing to the ribbon between her fingers.

She glared at me, "I'm just saying that's what it looks like okay? I'm _not_ making a pun for once." I said, holding up my hands in a gesture of innocence. She glared for a moment before she sighed, reaching up to undo it. I stopped her though, grabbing the ribbon ends in both hands. I had a sudden feeling I was going to regret this later, but I also had the sense I'd _never_ get this opportunity again. I pulled the ribbon back, looping it around her hands and tying it below her wrists before she could stop me. She tried moving back, her eyes widening as she realized what I'd done. "You… okay, _very_ funny Jaune. Now untie me." she said, giving a faint smile. I turned, sitting down in my chair, pulling my hat back on my head.

Blake walked over, giving a slight glare, "Okay… _seriously_. Untie me." she said, holding up her hands. I nodded, reaching over and pulling out my switchblade. The second I got it near the ribbon, she jumped back, glaring towards me. "What? You want untied or not?" I asked, giving a faint smile towards her, flipping the blade up in the air. She glared at me, nodding a few times, " _Untie_ it! If I didn't want the ribbon intact I'd just break it myself!" she said, still glaring at me, her face tinted red. I just shrugged, setting the blade away and opening up a few drawers, knowing what would come next. She walked over, still glaring as she laid her hands down on the desk in front of me. I simply ignored her, shutting a few drawers before I pulled out one of my many notebooks.

I heard a growl of displeasure come from her, "Jaaaune!" she said, now simply frowning at me. I (pretended) to ignore her, opening the book and writing a few things in it. Things I'd _meant_ to write down a long time ago, but had never really gotten around to it. She stepped back, moving around and sitting on my desk, both her legs on the side of my chair. "Jaune!" she said, her voice suddenly irate. I leaned back, trying to look as relaxed as I could while holding down the laughter at my girlfriend's current situation. Trapped by me in a technically easy to break ribbon, yet impossible to untie by her. She kept glaring at me before she stood, getting on her knees and laying her hands on my stomach, as if in prayer. "Jaune _please_ untie me? Is that what you wanted? _Pleeeease_!?" she asked, pouting up towards me in one of the more pitifully adorable looks I'd seen from her.

Fortunately for me (and _un_ fortunately for Blake), being the effective uncle of Ton-Ton had rendered me all but immune to the infamous 'puppy eyes' technique as I called it. It took her awhile to notice it failed, but when it did I saw her eyes practically burning holes through my skin. "You _could_ get someone else to untie it." I said simply. I knew her answer, but I also knew a different reason. The knot I'd tied it in was used _specifically_ by the Arc clan, to ensure that _no_ captive could ever find a way to untie it. Of course, Ren could probably figure it out eventually but, I knew that wouldn't be Blake's reason in the first place. " _You_ did this, _you_ untie it!" she said, gritting her teeth as she loomed over me, all the while I was just smoking a cigar and writing in a notebook. Not the reasoning _I'd_ expected, but it all worked out in the end.

She leaned back, glaring at me from the desk as I continued to act unphased, as if I'd not heard her _or_ noticed the death glare she had directed at me. Eventually she stood, leaning over my shoulder, her head against mine. "Jaune… I'm not leaving this room until you untie my hands." she said, laying her hands on my chest. I just shrugged, as if to say 'that's okay' before I returned to my notebook, writing a few more things before setting it aside, picking up another one. She glared at me, trying to slap the notebook from my hand. With only hers stuck together that way though? Barely even felt it. She fell back, sighing as she let her back hit against the wall, sitting on her legs. "Can I at least have a drag?" she asked, pitifully gazing at me. That request, unlike the others, I obeyed.

I held the cigar to her lips, letting her take a breath before I pulled it back, doing the same as we both exhaled the smoke. She leaned back, looking up at me for a second as I figured something, laying a small bobby-pin near the edge of my desk and clipped it right to her hair, between her cat ears. She looked at me for a second, raising an eyebrow as her ears started twitching. I just waited, watching out of the corner of my eyes as her ears twitched more, her shaking her slightly to try and get it off. Eventually she reached up, pawing at the space between her ears to try and get rid of it. I just watched, quietly enjoying what I'd brought to pass thanks to Blake's own ribbon and Sienna's phone call. When she finally got it off she looked up at me, "What do I have to do to get you to untie this?" she asked.

Again I gave no answer, simply writing in my notebook as Blake slumped over, her eyes deep in thought as she tried to come up with some kind of plan. She seemed to come up with one after awhile, smirking as she stood, walking over to the door. I didn't need to hear the click to know she'd locked it, or the sound of padding to know she was walking over. I looked up, seeing her lean on the desk, giving a seductive smirk towards me. "Would you please untie me, honey?~" she asked, putting as much of a purr as Sienna, holding out her hands. I set the notebook down, giving her a small smile. She looked at me, hopeful… though, only until I opened my mouth. "Did you really think that would work? Even as pretty as you are, I'm not going to break for that." I said simply, going back to my notebook.

Blake frowned at that, only to stand up, walking back behind the desk before she reached up and (with _great_ difficulty) unbuttoning a few buttons of her black button-down. _Just_ enough to expose her bra. She leaned over, tilting my head down to look at her cleavage. "What about now?~" she asked. I just shook my head, giving a slight smile before turning back to my notebook. She grunted, stepping back and pacing around a bit, her face tinted slightly red. She walked behind me, my eyes widening when I heard what sounded like a zipper and button behind undone, what I had no doubt were Blake's pants falling to the floor. I looked up to see a long, slender leg on my desk. Tracing it back revealed Blake's black underwear and a mostly unbuttoned shirt, a smirk on her face. "I can take off more… but not with my hands tied.~" she said, holding them out.

As tempting as it was (and oh, it was _tempting_ ), I still shook my head, going back to my notebook. Blake slammed her hands on the desk, "Oh _COME_ ON! _THAT_ wasn't enough!? What do you _WANT_ from me!?" she asked, glaring down at me. I turned my eyes back, giving her a small smile before I pulled back from the desk, her (without hesitation surprisingly) pulling herself into my lap, her barely-covered crotch over my completely covered one, her face red with both fury and embarrassment (it was honestly hard to tell which was more at this point). She stayed there for awhile before she sighed, "Jaune… just tell me already. I'm already half-naked trying to guess." she said, frowning down at me.

I just reached over, pulling her off my lap and standing us both up. She looked up at me, "I don't care if it's to bend over your desk at this point just, just tell me _something_ already." she asked, her face tinting red as she looked back towards the desk, getting more and more red as she no doubt imagined what it would be like. I sat down, reaching over and unbuttoning the last few buttons on her shirt, reaching down and, before her disbelieving eyes, pulling her panties down to her ankles. She looked back, "I… I was kidding about the, the desk… if… if you, wa… want to… though…" I shook my head as I pulled her back, unclasping her bra, letting it hang from the straps around her shoulders, pulling the edges out past her shirt before I pulled her back on the ground, the same way she was sitting a minute ago.

"Just sit there for a bit, let me finish my work. Then we'll see about getting that ribbon off you." I said, giving a small smile as I leaned forward, working in the notebook again. Sure enough, Blake sat there, a burning red face as she looked straight ahead, eyes occasionally flicking over to the door. Once I finished the notebook I laid it back inside the drawer, giving Blake a faint smile. I pulled my chair out from beneath the desk, grabbing Blake's shoulder, "Go beneath the desk, and when I come back, I'll untie you if you want." I said. Blake glared at me, her face burning even brighter before she complied, crawling beneath the desk as I subtly snagged the underwear from her ankles. She looked back at me, "If anyone else sees me like this…" she trailed off, still glaring at me. I just nodded a few times, leaning in and kissing her neck, patting her ass with one hand and lightly toying with her hanging bra with the other.

She glared at me, her breathing picking up slightly as I pushed the chair in, walking over and picking up Blake's clothes (what she'd taken off at least) and setting them in the nearby closet, hidden behind a box. I walked over to the door, pulling it open before using my key and locking it behind me. Blake may not have been _serious_ about her threat but, I wasn't about to find out. I turned off to the right, heading upstairs towards the familiar door of the clinic. The second I walked into the upstairs hallway though, I could tell _exactly_ what had happened without having to consult Nora.

A _massacre_.

The five men and women still left of the sugar-sloths were in bad shape. As in, some of them were missing _limbs_ bad shape. They'd had recently patched over arms, legs, one guy was missing an eye. I walked past them, all eyes (eye in the case of that one guy) on me as I opened the door to the clinic, shutting the door behind me before turning to face Nora. There she was, the mighty leader of the sugar sloths, laying in bed nursing a bullet-wound to the arm. She looked up, flashing me a smile before she winced, holding her arm again. I sat down nearby, just looking at her. "Got something to say? Or just coming to visit your partners wife?" she asked, giving a small smirk. I returned it… the bullet hadn't hit her funny-bone at least.

"Has Ren told you about the heist?" I asked, dropping the smile. It was time to talk business, not pleasantries. Nora nodded a few times, glaring at the wall behind me before she gestured to her arm. "Yeah… I can't help though. Most of my crew can't either. You wanna do this… you're on your own Jaune." she said, leaning back on the bed. I just nodded, standing up and walking towards the door. She looked towards me, raising an eyebrow as I prepared to leave. "That it? Leaving so soon? Here I was prepped for a full on debate…" she said, giving me a faint smile before gripping her arm again. I smiled right back before I turned, walking out the door. I took a breath through my cigar, blowing out a bit of smoke before I walked towards the stairs.

" _Should've seen that coming… can't wait for them all to heal. Need a team and a plan in a week…_ " I thought, walking down the stairs and back towards my office, taking out my key. I opened the door, shutting and locking it behind me before walking to the desk, pulling the chair back and looking down. Sure enough, Blake was _just_ as I'd left her, still glaring at me. "How you feeling?" I asked, sitting down across from her, my hand on my chin in the most irritatingly casual pose I could. She nearly growled at me, moving around a bit as she leaned back against the desk, her face still _burning_. "Untie me." she said flatly, her voice and eyes telling _completely_ different stories. I was almost _afraid_ to untie her at this point. Though, I _had_ promised her I'd untie her when I got back. I leaned over, untying the Arc knot before setting the ribbon aside, only for Blake to stand up, glaring up at me.

"Okay… now tell me why you tied me up." she asked, glaring at me as I saw her -surprisingly- toss her bra aside, her only coverage being her unbuttoned shirt. I decided to chance it, wrapping my arms around her. It could go one of two ways… and given the fact she'd wrapped her arms back around mine, it went the one that ended well for me. I let one hand linger down, toying with the edge of her shirt as the other caressed her face. I smiled, "I thought you'd look cute like that… didn't realize I'd have a sexy, stripping kitty in my office when I did it." I said, giving a faint smile as both our faces tinted pink. She glared at me for a moment before leaning up, her chin against my chest. For a few seconds we just stared, as if daring the other to make the first move. Eventually I did, lowering my hand and cupping her rear. Her face burned as she responded, capturing my lips again as I leaned us down, nearly bending her over the desk.

She pulled back, shrugging her shirt off (for what little cover it _actually_ gave) and leaning down on the desk, pulling me down with her. "You tied me up, I stripped down, and all you do is pat my ass and kiss my neck… I want more." she said, her eyes holding a familiar hunger in them. I just smiled, not bothering to resist as I felt her toying with my belt, shoving my coat off of me. "Then more you'll have, my horny little kitty~" I said, smirking as I saw her face _explode_ with a blush grenade. She stood, turning around and behind over the desk, gripping the edges. I trailed a hand along her back, smirking as I felt her shiver. I slipped off my own clothes, one thought going through my mind as I did so.

" _Hope no one needs me for he next hour... maybe two._ "


End file.
